Different DxD Retold (I have Permission from the original author)
by The.Rayvenwolves
Summary: Issei is dying. He's Sona's fiance even though he doesn't know it. How will we prevent him from dying and what will he do when he finds out he's engaged to Sona? Non perverted Issei. Strong Issei. Smarter Issei. Issei x Sona. Rated M for later on in the story and occasional profanity.
1. Fated Meeting

S.R: Okay that's right folks this is a High school DxD story.

Issei: Yay time for my harem!

S.R: Nope…. No harem, instead you only get one lover with that being Sona. Quick shout out to **FunahoMisaki** for the story idea.

Issei: Since this is really just you talking to yourself should I point out that said author is quoted as saying "Not done with it, just planning where it will go now. Feel free to write your own version though" in response to being asked if the story was dead or on hiatus.

S.R: Mention that it's a High school DxD story, check. Give credit where credit is due, check. Disclaim the story, not check. Summarize the back story, not check.

Issei: Disclaim away….

S.R: **ahem** I DO NOT, I repeat do not own High school DxD. I do not own any of these characters. I don't even own the story concept this time. As a matter of fact here is the link to the original story:

s/12497150/1/Different-DxD

Issei: Well said. Now for the story Summary.

S.R: In this story Issei is actually a devil, kidnapped while still in the cradle. After some mishap he is abandoned by his kidnapper, who somehow managed to change Issei's genetics enough to make him human. He adopted by his human parents, and while they raise him, his body starts to tear itself apart from the inside due to conflicting powers residing within him.

Issei: I do believe we can check everything off the list now. Should we continue on to the story then?

S.R: Yup… Read on my fair readers, read on (or at least those of you that read these things and don't just skip to the story).

"rawr" - speaking

' _rawr'_ \- thoughts/ telepathy

"rawr" - emphasized word

" **rawr"** \- beast talking

' ** _rawr_ '** \- beast thinking

* * *

It was a sunny day with a nice breeze, making it the perfect day to be called a summer day. The only downfall to the day would be that it is a school day. Granted it's still early enough for students to be milling about on school property waiting for the day to properly begin. Most were just lounging about, either in the shade of the trees found on the campus or inside sitting at their desk. A few others were outside at a table watching as chess games were played.

"Oh Issei! Where have you been? We were starting to think something had happened to ya" A teenage boy called out while waving at a brown haired boy that had just walked through the school gates.

Unknown to anyone one of the two currently playing chess, Sona Shitori the student council Vice President a.k.a the one that was winning and had won all of the games before as well glanced up after feeling a powerful presence wash over her. Though if someone had noticed her she could just say she was curious since the one that called out had a slight edge of worry in his tone.

The one that had called out had a shaven head, though it must have been done a few days ago because you could see the hair starting to grow back. Standing next to him was a dark haired boy with glasses. The two were glancing at the brown haired boy now identified as Issei, as if looking for injuries.

"Guy's I'm fine. I just missed the bus, plus as you already know my bike was stolen last week, so I had to run today."

Issei responded to them, smiling even though anyone paying enough attention would see they looked a little more worried and slightly angry after hearing his explanation. Sona, still watching was interested now. The two were very open perverts, yet protective over Issei. What was really interesting to her however was the power she felt from him was both cold and warm to her devilish senses.

"You could have called us you know. I mean our bikes have two seats for a reason. After all your house is like 10 miles away. But running that far after what happened a few days ago" The shaven headed one commented getting a nod of agreement from the glasses wearing boy.

"A small run won't kill me, I mean I walked most of the way. Besides we agreed we'd leave that behind us when we got accepted here remember?"

As he spoke Issei gave the two a slight glare, making them nod. Waiting a few seconds he asked about what was going on. The dark haired boy wearing glasses explained that the Vice President of the student council was playing chess against anyone that wanted to try their luck. He also mentioned that she had beaten everyone.

"She's so good, she might even beat you and you're a whiz at the game!" The shaven one chimed in motioning towards the chess board, which was now reset as Sona had won the game even without paying full attention.

Sona however frowned wondering if he was only slightly better than average but liked to brag to his friends. Not even giving it a second thought Issei walked over.

"Mind a match? If that lazy behind says you're good then you've got to be really good" Issei asked waiting for her response before even making a move to sit down.

"Very well, you're the only first year male I haven't gotten a chance to play yet… Which side do you want?"

"Ladies first, so you pick the sides" Issei said as he smiled while sitting down. Sona's lips twitched at his words, as she thought ' _at least he has manners_ '. Sona set up the board then spun it so that Issei would be playing the White pieces.

"Forcing me to have the first move by giving me white. That's a good way to test the waters and be able to react to any strategy I make" Issei stated in amusement.

Sona smirked, happy he didn't seem to have any ill will towards her for doing this unlike the last person who noticed. Issei smiled back at her as he made his move. Five minutes into the game Sona started to notice how easily he was countering her strategies, all while seeming like he was just making random moves.

"Oh check it out Issei, they're doing a remake of the series!" The glasses wearing boy interrupted the match as he handed Issei a magazine. The two started to chat about whatever series it was, with Issei not even paying attention to the game yet still brilliantly battling against Sona.

Studying the board Sona winced when she had to sacrifice her queen, wondering just how talent Issei was at chess to be besting her without looking as he continued to chat with his friend. A few turns later Issei had promoted most of his pawns to rooks. Sona put up a struggle after that, but in the end she lost.

"Giving up already?" A random boy taunted Issei when he stood up.

"No, he won… He's got me in Checkmate, there's no way I can move my king and it can't sit still without being taken either."

At this point everyone that knew how good Sona was, stared at the board in shock. Issei however just offered her his hand.

"Great game! That was the best match I've had in a while though so let me know if you want a rematch, I'll play any time."

After that the crowd that was watching dissipated and Issei walked off with his friends leaving Sona and her peerage. All of whom were flabbergasted as he had beaten her in chess. The one thing preventing her parents from marrying her off as part of an arranged marriage. Yet Issei didn't even know it.

He didn't know that by beating her, according to the agreement she had with her parents Issei had now become her fiance…

Finally the silence was broken by the cackling from Sona's queen and friend Tsubaki. The grin she had, made the blushing bride to be, rush to stop her but it was too late.

"I call dibs on telling Leviathan about her new soon to be brother in-law!"

 **Timeskip**

"Sona. To what do I owe the visit?"

Rias Gremory, the girl most lusted after in the school asked her rival and 'friend' as Sona entered the old school building during her free time to speak to her.

"Well we agreed to always tell each other when we found a prospective peerage member to avoid fighting over them. I don't want any misunderstandings so I figured it'd be best to inform you"

Sona said pointedly as Rias just shrugged at her.

After all it wasn't common knowledge, but back when Rias's rook Koneko was supposed to be executed it was Sona's older sister Serafall who rescued the poor girl not Rias's older brother Sirzechs. The only reason Koneko was part of Rias's peerage instead was that Lord Gremory, Rias's father bribed the council into letting Rias revive her first.

While Sirzechs and Serafall the current Lucifer and Leviathan respectively were pissed off, they had to help hide the scandal so as to avoid fighting between households in the devil community. The didn't want the girls to hurt each other, but the damage had already been done, Sona never fully trusts Rias on anything anymore not mentioning to her that Serafall had given her two mutated Rook pieces as an apology.

"Oh good. I've also found potential peerage members. Two of them actually."

"First year Issei Hyoudou, is my claimed prospect" Sona spoke immediately getting a scoff from Rias.

"He's powerless. You can have him though I'm going for his two friends, the perverts. I sense strong ice magic in one and fire in the other, though it's hard to tell which is which since they spend so much time together. But they should be useful to my situation."

Sona's queen Tsubaki was with her and using telepathy, spoke to her king ' _They think the strong magic is coming from his friends?_ '

' _Ice and fire don't mix well, and it's unheard of for one person to have both. That amount of power in one human would be enough to kill… kill him._ ' Sona sent back stuttering at the end as she realized that could possibly be why Issei's friends are so protective of him.

"Very well Rias, I'll mark the two off as yours. When do you plan to tell them?"

Sona questioned as she marked something on her ever present clipboard, masking the fact she was communicating with her queen. It was a special trick Serafall had taught Sona and her peerage for use in emergencies.

"When they die" Rias responded to the question, casually looking out the window and down at the boys outside the kendo club's changing rooms. Sona also looked and smiled when she saw Issei napping on the ground behind his friends.

"I'll be telling Issei next month after I judge his character a bit." Sona mentioned to her rival, with a disapproving tone at her friends reply.

"Aside from his powerful friends what about him caught your eye?"

Moving to leave Sona responded that Issei had beaten her at chess, before leaving a shocked and spluttering Rias since she knew what that meant.

"Momo and Reya are in his class. They'll keep an eye on him and learn his plans for the future" Sona said to her queen. Tsubaki nodded just as angry yells were heard followed by pain filled male screams.

The perverts were caught by the kendo club. But before Sona and Tsubaki could make their way over the kendo girls noticed Issei, shouting about how there was another one. The two perverts jumped in front of their friend and shouted the word no. The mentioned that he had been sleeping the entire time.

"Matsu? Moto? What's with all the yelling?" Issei groggily asked as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. Quite a few members of the kendo club started blushing at how cute he looked with a couple of them even squealing. Sona also blushed a bit at how cute he looked.

"Don't tell me you two were peeping on girls again, I told you that you'd get caught and hurt" Issei spoke before yawning after he saw how roughed up his friends looked. His friends went to apologize but before they could finish a coughing fit over took Issei, startling everyone when he moved his hand and they saw blood on his chin.

"I'm alright, it just hit me suddenly that's all." Issei said waving his friends off as he wiped the blood away.

"W-why?" One of the kendo girls asked as Sona and Tsubaki approached silently.

"I have a new illness. It's not contagious, and its incurable. Doctors say I'll probably die before I graduate. I tried to leave it behind me but I couldn't apparently" Issei explained before sighing.

Sona felt her heart stop, as her supposed and unknowing fiance was dying. But learning that told her that her earlier guess about his powers killing him was correct.

"So… You weren't peaking with your friends because…" One of the first year kendo girls asked feeling rather sad.

"No offense ladies, I mean you are all gorgeous but… I refuse to get attached to someone or try and date anyone only to hurt them when I die. I'd never want to hurt someone like that. Besides I was napping because I had a really bad attack a few days ago, that put me in the hospital. I'm still somewhat weak from then."

At this point Sona and Tsubaki announced their presence as Sona spoke softly, her words had the kendo club agreeing though the pervert duo was crying because all the girls were now off limits thanks to the bro-code.

"To think that you are still able to smile even while suffering from such a cruel fate… You are one of the strongest people I've met. If anyone gives you problems… Come straight to me and I'll sort them out."

* * *

S.R: To anyone that has read the original you've probably noticed that I combined the first two chapters. That's because I'm trying to make my chapters and stories longer. I cut this one here, because I felt combining the first three chapters would be pushing it just a little. Anyway, review and tell me what you think?


	2. Revealing Devils

S.R: Wow you guys jumped on the bandwagon pretty quickly there. I mean the first chapter hasn't even been up 24 hours at this point already gotten 10 reviews, 22 people have added it as a favorite story, 33 people are following it, over 300 people have viewed it.

Issei: It must be my harem protagonist charm pulling everyone in even when I don't actually get a harem.

S.R: Sure, let's go with that. Anyway let's get on to the next chapter.

* * *

A full month had passed since the day Issei beat Sona at chess. But that has nothing to do with right now. Right now Issei has walked into the student council office.

"Shitori, you called for me?" Issei asked only to get a glare for using her last name.

"Issei, I told you a while ago we're friends so. That means we're on a first name basis, so please call me Sona"

"Sorry, It's just a habit. Anyway why did you ask for me Sona?" Issei asked again earning a smile since he used her first name. You see they became rather close because any time Issei wasn't hanging out with his perverted friends Matsuda and Motohama, he was with Sona and Tsubaki. Although he had also been spending a bit of time with Momo and Reya since they were classmates, and part of the student council.

Issei also spent a bit of time with Katasse and Murayama, two first year girls from the kendo club that had become protective of him as well. It didn't take long for the school to find out the kendo club and student council were protecting him, though no one could find out why since Issei didn't want people to know about the secret that is his illness.

"Issei… What if I told you devils were real?" Sona asked him as a response to his question of why she called for him.

"Wait, you know about them to?"

"How do you already know about devils?"

Sona's question about devils, and Issei's answer surprised each other and everyone else in the room. Thankfully Sona could push the surprise away and once she did she was curious as to how he already knew about devils.

"Well…When I was little a lady from the church discovered that I had magic power. She told me about how people that knew about magic might come after me. Aunt Grizelda as I called her taught me a lot, including telling me about angels, fallen-angels, and devils. She tried to help me control my powers. Thanks to her teaching I can do this" Issei paused in his explanation and created a crystallized rose made out of ice in one hand and a bright red metallic gauntlet with a shining green gem appeared on the other hand. The gauntlet also had a rather draconic appearance.

"I see… I should inform you that everyone in this-" Sona started to say before getting cut off.

"I know that you are all devils. I can sense it, just like I can tell that Rias's Occult Research Club is a full of devils."

"Issei I only know of a few exorcists, angels, and mostly devils that can sense others like that… Tell me, what do you sense from me?" Sona responded as her eyes narrowed in thought. ' _His strong fire magic makes sense now, considering he's got a sacred gear that is dragon in origin. But his ice magic… Could he have devil heritage? As far as I know only devils have the ability to sense another devils magic_ '

"From you Sona I sense water mostly. I mean there's a hint of ice, but mostly water. You've also got a commanding presence" Issei responded, no hesitation in his answer making Sona nod slightly as he confirmed her suspicion.

"What do you know of your family Issei? I mean I've only heard of devils being able to sense another devils magic before" Sona now had a concerned look on her face, though it was also a serious look. If he had devil heritage that meant he was likely a bastard child. Given his high magic power, mostly likely he was the son of a high class devil, and there were only two devil families Sona knew about that had ice magic.

"I don't have a clue since I'm adopted… If I remember right my parents saw some strange looking guy… I'm an idiot. They saw a devil leaving me in an alleyway when they were on their way home from the movies." Issei faceplamed at the realization wondering how he hadn't figured it out before.

Steeling herself for his answer to her next question Sona asked Issei if he could also control water.

If he said no, that meant a member of the Lucifuge family that was basically extinct was his parent. If he said yes… Then one of her parents had him in secret and they were half siblings.

"If I focus really hard I can, but it always causes an attack, so I'd say I can't control water. Ice is so easy to use it's almost as easy as breathing." Issei shook his head, making Sona smile and let out a small sigh of relief.

That meant they weren't half siblings. She also knew he wasn't her sister Serafall's child since she would have found out about the pregnancy at the same time as Serafall. That left her other suspicion the Lucifuge family… Though she only knew of one living member of that family.

"Moving on to the real reason I called for you…. Issei, I'm going to be honest with you. I want your permission to revive you as a devil."

Issei gave her a small smile. One that looked far too familiar. Her eyes widened ever so slightly as she recalled a similar face every time she would spend time with Rias, or when she would visit the Gremory household and see little Millicas with both of his parents when they were off duty.

"Sorry Sona, but I don't think that's a good idea."

Sona heard the refusal, but hardly acknowledged it as her eyes were fixated on his smile. There was only one thing going through her mind at the time. ' _He has Grayfia's smile._ '

After a few moments she recovered enough to realize he had said no and asked why. Issei told her he didn't want to risk being revived with his illness since at times when he's suffering from an attack it's very painful and he didn't want to live hundreds of years suffering like that. Acknowledging his response she told him her offer would always be there, and let him continue on with his day.

 **Timeskip (last one for a while)**

It had been a year since Sona had made her offer, and Issei grew even closer with her and the devils on the student council.

"You know my offer still stands Issei. I don't want to seem like I'm pressuring you but, you're getting worse faster, and I hate seeing you like this" Sona spoke as she helped wipe some blood off his chin from an attack he had while the two were playing chess in the student councils office.

"I know Sona, but my answer is still no. I'm not sure if my illness will still affect me and It's rather painful at times… Living for a long time while suffering doesn't sound good to me." Issei smiled weakly at her, realizing that she had become his best friend. Over the past year they had spent so much time together you'd think they were joined at the hip.

"I understand that Issei, but please… If something other than your illness kills you, please let me reincarnate you. I don't want anything to happen to you. So please promise me that way I can be prepared." Sona gently asked, staring at him with her violet colored eyes.

Issei conceded that much to her. Promising that if he died by anything besides his illness that she could revive him. It helps that she told him becoming a devil, would give him a body better suited to his powers and that might help him heal.

The idea was that his new devil body would help regulate his powers, with his connection to her water magic would help tone down his fire magic from the sacred gear and bolster his ice magic. This would end the fight between the powers on which one was the dominant power, thus stopping his power from tearing his body apart.

'Thank you Issei. You.. You're very important to me… I just… I don't want to imagine a world without you. One where you've been taken away from me by something you didn't plan. Your sickness I can understand. Anything else… I refuse to believe." Sona spoke, smiling at Issei and relieving him, though her words made him blush a little.

He had startled himself as he realized that he was crushing on Sona, and had been since the sixth month of the last school year. But if he chose to believe the comments he heard from Tsubaki, Momo, and Reya, then it was likely that Sona returned his feelings. Which was true, Sona just didn't know how to tell him. After all she didn't was to pressure him into doing things for her. Pressuring people into things was Rias's job.

Speaking of the red headed devil, Rias and her peerage seemed to have something against Issei. They were spreading horrible rumors around the school. Unfortunately the only people that didn't believe the rumors were the kendo club and the student council… Sona had actually punched a boy that made Issei cough up blood after being hit for "forcing Sona to spend time with him". Tsubaki quickly covered up her enhanced strength by mentioning Sona's over protective older sister had insisted that she learn martial arts before attending public school. Not that it was a lie, considering Serafall made sure Sona knew at least three different ways to defend herself with just her hands and feet, before she was one. Well one in human years, which would be 10 in devil years.

"I'm just sorry that thanks to this illness I keep hurting people, especially you. I mean yesterday I made a fallen-angel that had disguised herself as a human cry by turning her down." Issei told Sona as he laid his head on her shoulder when she sat down next to him.

"Is it wrong that I'm glad you told her no just like you told the human girls no?" Sona questioned as she tensed a bit when he said the words fallen-angel. But she relaxed as her still unknowing fiancee leaned into her side. Issei wasn't aware of the fact that he was like a giant heat/ice pack, as he leaned into her, soothing her aches and pains.

"You know I don't treat people differently just because of what they are. I mean take away powers, longer lives, and wings. What are they then? Human. We all still bleed the same color" Issei responded before yawning.

Sona shifted so that he was resting his head in her lap, telling him to take a quick nap and that she'd wake him up in time to go to his next class. After a moment she started running her fingers through his hair. Issei thanked her, blushing slightly at the sensation of her hands in his hair before nuzzling his face into her stomach ans he curled up around her on the couch. Sona blushed when he wound his arms around her, holding her in place.

Sona then noticed her sister's knight Peko Pekoyama, who was her self-proclaimed guardian, checking in on her from the shadows. Something she had always done even when she was at school. Sona waited until Issei's breathing evened out as proof that he had fallen asleep.

"Hi Peko. Nice to see you again. Though this is the fourth time this week you've come to check on me… And it's only Tuesday." Sona said, with a smile as a woman with white hair and red eyes, that hid behind glasses stepped out of the shadows. She was wearing all black and had a shinai hanging from her belt. Probably because she couldn't bring an actual weapon in public.

"Since checking on you last year, I've always noticed a strong ice magic, and strong fire based sacred gear. Even with how often you were around the source I was unable to pinpoint it. I'm just concerned that they might harm you" Peko stated smiling slightly at Sona. From the moment she saw the girl as a newborn babe, she had declared herself as Sona's protector. Her master and king Serafall openly encouraged the strongest knight in the underworlds desire to protect Sona from any threat.

Of course growing up around her sisters peerage, all of whom were protective of her, helped make potential enemies weary.

"Issei, wouldn't hurt me. We've remained friends even after he rejected my offer to reincarnate him last year. In fact I'd say he and Tsubaki are tied as my best friend. The others will agree with me after all we're all fairly protective of him." Sona responded smiling down at Issei, as her fingers carded through his hair without a thought.

"I've noticed. But he feels… He feels similar to Grayfia." Peko said, staring at the boy.

"He is a partial devil at least… He… He looks similar to Grayfia at times. He has her smile, which I remember from when Rias and I were children. When he's working on his artwork, he's got such a neutral face on, and it is almost exactly like hers. Heck his face has a similar shape to hers. On top of that he has her habit of trying to keep everyone at a distance, though that might be due to his illness."

Sona sighed as she finally gave up on trying to find a subtle way to learn about Issei's possible parentage.

"Peko, can you do me a favor real quick? Can you go and ask Grayfia to come here for an important matter? If she asks just mention I found a student with strong ice magic that tearing his body apart" Sona asked looking at the swordswoman who just nodded.

"of course. If she presses for more, like why he's so important to you or why she in particular is needed what should I say?"

"Unlike Serafall and I he has little to no water magic. All ice. While Serafall has ice magic, hers is an advanced form of water magic, while Grayfia's element is naturally ice." Sona explained which made Peko nod since it made sense.

"As to why he's so important to you?" Peko asked as she stepped into the shadows, to hid her magic circle as she prepared to teleport away. She was half way through teleporting already when Sona's answer came.

"He beat me at chess."

Peko stumbled in shock, which caused to fall on her ass when she arrived at the Gremory mansion where she had teleported to.

"Woah Peko, outside of fighting I've never seen you teleport that roughly… Wait you weren't fight were you?" Serafall asked, looking amused as she glanced over her knight, while messing with Sirzechs the two playing around while Grayfia tried to prevent them from destroying his office.

"No, I just received some shocking news from your sister as I was teleporting out."

"Oh how is she? Is Sona alright?" Serafall quickly latched onto her knight, clinging to the mention of her little sister.

"Sis-con" Sirzechs taunted his friend, causing her to stick her tongue out at him.

"That's funny coming from the Sis-con king! At least Sona doesn't mind it so long as strangers aren't around!" Serafall teased back, which made Sirzechs pout. It was actually kind of funny. It was an ongoing thing between the two of them to spoil their little sisters rotten, and adore them. But Serafall was right, as Rias had started to detest her brothers sis-con nature not just in public but even when it was just the two of them.

"Anyway Sona is fine, though she sent me to ask for your assistance" Peko stated before turning to Grayfia.

* * *

S.R: this time I combined chapters 3 and 4 plus a little part of chapter 5. I could have done more, but I do want to break it up a bit. Side note, rather than posting it all at once I'm doing one chapter (my way) a day until I catch up with the original story. So expect the next chapter tomorrow unless the storm the weather man is calling for knocks my power out.


	3. Meeting His Real Parents

S.R: Alright, I've got the day off and don't feel like sleeping. Why am I telling you all this? Because I want you to know I got so impatient and ready to upload this story that I actually did. At 2:30 in the morning. Well for me at least. You all are probably in different time zones.

Issei: You're really invested in this story aren't you?

S.R: More like I want to get all the ideas I came up with out of my head already, so I'm speeding through til then. One of which will come up this chapter. I'm changing a certain thing, but I'll talk more on that once the chapter is done.

Issei: I think my point stands.

S.R: Eh, we can debate that later. For now let's just get on with the story.

* * *

 **Last time**

"Anyway Sona is fine, though she sent me to ask for your assistance" Peko stated before turning to Grayfia.

 **This time**

"Might I ask why? Is everything okay?" Grayfia asked as her eyes narrowed in thought.

"I would never leave Sona in a dangerous situation" Peko started to answer before continuing "She is requesting for your assistance because she has found a student at the school, a young man a year behind her. He has powerful ice magic but it's constantly at war with his fire-type sacred gear, that based on the power I feel from it is draconic in origin. The two powers are ripping his body apart, at times it's bad enough that he coughs up blood. From what I've overheard he's predicted to die within the year if something isn't done"

Serafall, Sirzechs, and Grayfia all nodded at the explanation, it made sense though it seemed like a sad situation. Though they had to wonder how the boy had come to have two opposing elements, as it's unheard of for someone to have affinities that conflict.

"But why didn't Sona ask for me then? I have ice magic to."

"I had asked that as well. From her explanation he has very powerful and natural ice magic, and little if any water magic. Since your ice magic came from training your water magic, she felt it would be better to ask Grayfia as there's more of a similarity between their powers than yours."

"I can understand that reasoning. Though now I wonder why this boy is so important to Sona?" Grayfia responded as they all realized it would make more sense for Grayfia to help the boy than Serafall now.

Peko glanced at her king, knowing that she probably wasn't going to take the news very well. Deciding to give a bit of context just in case, she explained.

"Despite turning down, her offer of being reincarnated as a devil unless he died of something other than his 'illness' they are very friendly and… close with each other. There was an incident where Sona had punched a fellow student for hitting the boy in the stomach and making him cough up some blood. She broke the fellows jaw in two places with that punch."

Serafall grinned at that before loudly and proudly declaring that was her baby sister, though she caught on and was slightly worried at the fact Peko was hesitating.

"It also seems that… he… well, the boy has… won against her while playing chess" Peko stated, wincing at the silence in the room, before an explosion of power radiated out from her king.

"WHAT!?" Serafall screamed, her eyes wide. The scream drew the rest of Sona's peerage and Sirzechs's peerage as well. Everyone on full alert.

"Serafall, what's wrong?" Serafall's queen, Mukuro Ikusaba questioned hands twitching towards the knives hung on her belt. Her question echoed by Ibuki Mioda, Serafall's bishop and one of the less extreme members of her peerage. Sona threw her arms out around Ibuki crying.

"It's terrible Ibu! Sona got engaged!" Sona's words caused most of her peerage to freeze in shock for a moment, before one of her pawns, a giant of a man named Behemoth calmly asked one word.

"What?"

"A boy with strong ice magic and a fire-type sacred gear beat Sona at chess!" Serafall wailed.

"Well then… It seems we're taking a trip to the school to visit Sona" Mukuro said, her hands clenched around the handles of her knives. Peko chimed in at that.

"Serafall please remember that Sona doesn't want the boy to die. She is actively trying to prevent him dying, not have him killed by her older sister and her peerage."

"But it's no easy feat to claim victory in chess against any member of the Sitri family. Especially not for a boy as sickly as you noted him to be. I think I'll go with you, it seems like it'll be interesting. After all Grayfia is going to help teach him his ice magic right sweetie?" Sirzechs stated as he wrapped an arm around his wife's waist, only to have her step out of his arms for a moment as she flicked his forehead.

"I've told you about calling me that when I'm on duty" Grayfia scolded him as she pulled on his cheek.

Sirzechs repeatedly said ow and nodded at her words before she finally let go.

"So then, shall we go meet Sona's betrothed?"

As Grayfia finished speaking her question a magic circle appeared under the group. The teleported into the Occult Research Club's club room, which due to classes still going on was currently empty.

"Both Sona and the boy have a free period right now. When I left they were in the student council room please follow me" Peko stated as she lead the group towards the student council's office. After a few minutes they arrived only to see Sona's peerage standing around the door looking in, a couple of them were squealing at whatever sight they were seeing. Sona's queen Tsubaki however was smiling as she took pictures quietly snickering.

"What's going on?" Sirzechs asked, which made the girls jump, though they recovered quickly enough not to disrupt whatever they were watching.

"Oh, sorry to be blocking the way Lucifer sir. It's just too cute." Momo answered blushing at the fact they all had been caught.

"What is?" Sirzechs asked still confused as to what was going on inside the room. The girls moved aside so the adults could look into the room.

Sona had fallen asleep sometime after Peko left. Issei was laying somewhat on top of her, with his head pillowed on her stomach, one arm still wrapped around the girl. Sona was draped across the couch, her head laying on one of the couches arms with one hand barely holding onto a pen hanging over the side. The other hand still in his hair almost as if the two were holding each other closer.

The adults could clearly tell that Sona had tried to get some work done, but with the large icy hot magic they were feeling coming off of Issei they knew how nice it must have felt to the girl who was likely stressed out with her duty as the student council President.

Peko had to hold Serafall back from attacking the boy, or glomping the two. It was hard to tell since she was being so quiet. But Ibuki being the clever girl and calm one of the group clasped her hand around her kings mouth the second it opened, effectively muffling the squeal that Serafall was attempting to make.

Sirzechs and Grayfia however were just staring at the boys face. He looked so similar to Grayfia, though he also somewhat resembled Sirzechs, just with a darker shade to his hair. The same shade as Sirzechs mother actually… The couldn't see his eyes since he was sleeping but the power they felt from him also contributed to their shock. To them it felt very familiar.

"Takumi" Grayfia mumbled her voice shaking, as tears started to form in her eyes.

"Grayfia?" Tsubaki asked worriedly once she looked at the older woman, and noticed how she seemed to be struggling to stand. Noticing just how shocked yet happy she looked. Sirzechs swept her into a hug.

"That boy… We named him Takumi" Grayfia stated getting confused looks from Sona's peerage, where as Serafall and her peerage were shocked for a moment.

"Takumi… Isn't that the name you gav-" Serafall started to ask as she put the pieces together but was cut off, as Sirzechs confirmed that Issei was Millicas's older brother.

While he was speaking Grayfia stumbled into the room, once she got close enough Sona's eyes flashed demonically as she was awoke, but she relaxed once she saw Grayfia. Though she had jumped as Sirzechs finished speaking, the jolt waking Issei who was brought into a tearful hug by Grayfia as Sirzechs finished speaking.

"He's our oldest son."

Sona and her peerage were shocked as the revelation hit.

"Sona… What-what's happening. Do you know these people?" Issei questioned looking towards his friend as he tried to get out of the hug he was wrapped in. Only his response was her shocked face, howerver she quickly recovered.

"Issei, these are some other devils. Shortly after you fell asleep I sent my sister's knight Peko who was watching over us to find and ask Grayfia here to help train your ice magic so we could hopefully by you a bit more time." Sona explained as she fixed her glasses and regained her composure, thought in her head she was making note of the fact she was right that Issei was related to Grayfia.

"But it turns out that… Well that these two are your birth parents." Tsubaki stepped in and finished for her king. Issei blinked rapidly at that for a moment or two before looking up at the silver haired woman that was clinging to him while the red headed man stepped into the room.

"Wait… If I was abandoned then why do they look so happy to see me? I mean my adoptive parents found me after noticing a devil leaving me alone in an alleyway." Issei asked confused. Grayfia choked out a sob, Sirzechs eyes widened at the statement, while Serafall and her peerage grimaced as they remembered the incident.

"No! We never abandoned you! When you were a baby you were kidnapped right out of your crib. There was a Stray devil that wanted revenge on us… You were only a couple months old when it happened. I promise you that we searched" Sirzechs told him, as he stepped closer once more and everyone could clearly see how heartbroken he was recalling the incident.

"It's true! I helped with the search, heck we have never stopped looking. Oh! By the way I'm Serafall, Sona's older sister." Serafall stepped in and introduced herself to Issei, somehow feeling happy that Sona's husband to be was someone that they had a slight connection to already.

"So you're the beloved older sister that Sona keeps telling me abo-" Issei started only to be cut off by Sona's hand covering his mouth as she told him to shut up, since Serafall would never let her hear the end of it.

"She talks about me? I knew you loved me Sona!" Serafall cheered as she tackled Sona into a hug. Issei laughed at his friend as she struggled to get away from her older sister, but he startled her into worrying when his laughter turned into a coughing fit. The alarmed student council members stepped forward prepared to help their friend as Sona quickly pried her sister off and rushed to his side.

"It's fine. I'm alright, that was just a small attack" Issei told them weakly as he removed his hands from in front of his mouth. The blood that was on his chin, startled the older devils even though they had already been told that he was dying… Hearing about something and seeing it in person are two different things after all.

"Issei, any attack is cause to worry" Sona reminded the boy as she used a tissue to wipe the blood off his face, as her queen offered him a cup of water. Issei took a sip before looking over to the older devils and noticed how horrified they looked.

"And now that you know I'm pretty ill you don't want me. Understandable."

"No! That's not it at all. It's just… Seeing it for myself is very different from just hearing about it. I still love you and never stopped loving you Takumi." Grayfia lovingly said as she reached in front of her to stroke Issei's hair.

"Takumi?"

"That's the name you were born with. Takumi Lucifuge Gremory. You were born a month earlier than expected, and had Sirzechs nearly blow up the house due to panicking. On December 1st right at 5am, you were born." Grayfia explained to Issei, before smirking at her husband as she mentioned his panicking.

"I remember that. He didn't want to leave your side at all but we had to have a meeting, so all of the Satan's met up at your place. Mom and Dad were out so I had to bring Sona with me. She enjoyed feeling the baby kick. It was funny because you were calmer than he was, though did you see the looks on the other two Satan's faces? They were almost as bad as he was, and only because he was panicking!" Serafall laughed as she recalled the event.

"Yes, if I recall correctly every time Sona was around while I was pregnant she seemed drawn to the unborn baby despite only being a year old."

At this point Tsubaki hoped into the conversation.

"Maybe that was a sign of how close they'd be. And what they'd mean to each other. I remember what Issei did the one time to that arrogant wrestler that trying to flirt with Sona then grabbed her when she rejected him."

"You mean that time he cracked the wall by slamming a plastic knife into it? Then he threatened to cut off every inch of the guys skin and dip him in lemon juice and salt, afterwords he'd cut off the poor guys manhood and force feed it to him while he was being lowered into a vat of acid all while getting former prison inmates to gang rape the guy repeatedly? Yes I remember that" Momo answered making the older devils look to the boy, as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"Sona is very precious to me… Of course I'd destroy anyone that would try to harm her. That guy should be glad she pulled me off of him before I could carry out my threat." Issei said which made Sona smile at his admission.

"That was because I didn't want you to have another attack, you'd already had two that day after all."

"Protecting you is worth it"

"Hey! You idiot don't go saying stuff like that so casually"

"Oh I'm sorry I forgot you were a Tsundere" Issei responded to her making the student council snicker, while Sona blushed and tried not to smile.

"Barely even 16 and yet he's got several girls hanging around him all the time and an Ice Queen as his Fiancee? He takes after his old man alright" Sirzechs laughed as he spoke.

"Huh?" Issei asked confused, making the adults realize he didn't know.

"Er… You've beaten Sona in chess right?"

"Yeah, I've got 58 wins, she has 55, and we've had 96 or so ties. What does that have to do with her being my fiancee?"

"I was trying to find an easier and better way to tell you but it seems someone let the cat out of the bag." Sona said before sighing and explaining the situation to him.

"Sorry you're stuck with a dying boy here Sona. You deserve much better" Issei told her not noticing Grayfia and Sirzechs flinch at the mention that he's dying.

"Idiot! You are so damn clueless! Marriage agreement or not do you honestly think I would care so much about you if I wasn't in love with you?! Seriously I've been trying to drop hints for the past year!"

"Oh... Uh... Um… I… I guess I should ask you out on a date then?" Issei asked with a sheepish grin on his face. The student council were all laughing at him but he ignored them in favor of listening to Sona's answer. Though he rolled his eyes when Sirzechs pointed out that he was just as clueless as his mother was when he was trying to get her to go on a date with him.

"I'll go on a date with you but it can't be school related okay?"

Issei nodded his head at her demand and the two planned a movie date, agreeing to meet up at 6. Though they both blushed once they remembered they weren't alone. The adults had a good laugh however as all the girls on the student council in unison spoke in unison.

"FUCKING FINALLY!"

* * *

S.R: Now then.. I mentioned a change in this chapter. In the original story Issei's birth name was Lucias. In this one I chose to go with Takumi. Why Well I wanted to keep his name as a Japanese name. From what I found Takumi can be written many different ways to get the name a different meaning. For this one I'm choosing to go with the way that would make his name mean "Skill" or "Skillful" which will tie in later. I also changed the number of chess games they played, just because I felt like it.

Issei: Are you going to mention ending it as the same place Chapter 6 in the original story does because it cracks you up?

S.R: You just did that for me so no. Any who my fair readers, keep on doing what you're doing and we'll see you with the next chapter tomorrow!


	4. Preparations For A Date

S.R: God dammit… I can't stop myself!

Issei: Is that a bad thing?

S.R: Considering I'm trying to pace myself so that I don't spend all day in front of a computer typing up all these chapters at once I'd say yes.

Issei: But why don't you want to do that?

S.R: Sitting in front of a computer and staring at the screen all day is a good way to ruin my eyes and I'm pretty damn proud of the fact that in my family I'm the only one with 20/20 eyesight.

Issei: Fair point I guess, though it doesn't matter since you're here now.

S.R: Yeah, yeah. Please ignore these ramblings my fair readers… Oh and I changed the birth name he was supposed to have because I wanted to keep his name as something Japanese. Just mentioning it again because people didn't read my little note at the end of the last chapter.

Issei: What makes you think they'll pay attention this time?

S.R: I don't but it doesn't hurt to mention my reasoning again just in case. Now then on to their date preparations! Let's get on with the story.

Reminder below:

"rawr" - speaking

'rawr' - thoughts/ telepathy

"rawr" - emphasized word

"rawr" - beast talking

'rawr' - beast thinking

* * *

"Shit, I didn't think this through very well" Issei mummbled to himself as he studied his closet in panic. Nothing from his wardrobe seemed good enough for his date with Sona.

"Dad?!" Issei called out, making both Sirzechs and his adoptive father Iseki jump up before freezing and wondering which one he was asking for.

"Would you both come help me find something to wear on my date with Sona? Nothing looks good enough to me."

Iseki blinked at Issei's question. He blinked again. And again, before finally turning his head towards the kitchen where his wife Emiko was chatting with Grayfia calling out to her.

"Hey sweetie?"

"Yes, my dear?" Emiko asked as the two women poked their heads into the living room where the men had been talking.

"Did you know that Issei is finally going on a date with that nice girl Sona?"

"Fucking finally" Emiko responded with a smile, making Grayfia laugh and Sirzechs chuckle a bit before mentioning that the rest of the student council said the exact thing.

"Oh please Mr. Gremory, everyone but those two could see it! I mean he's been sweet on her since shortly after they first met. And any time she comes over to help him study it's clear that she adores him."

"Don't worry about that Mrs. Hyoudou, Tak- Issei gets his oblivious nature from Grayfia. I spent the better part of 3 years trying to get her to notice that I was sweet on her." Sirzechs said nearly calling Issei Takumi.

Immediately upon returning home Issei introduced his adoptive parents to his real ones. They hit it off and were becoming good friends as they talked about the boy. Sirzechs and Grayfia introduced themselves both using the Gremory surname even though as one of the Four Satan's he should have introduced himself as Sirzechs Lucifer. Though when his name came up, it was decided that since he had been adressed as Issei for years and that it would be weird to change now, he would take Takumi on as a middle name. As they talked about his name Issei decided that he wanted to keep part of his birth name and part of his adopted name. So he came up with the idea of being named Issei Takumi Hyoudou Gremory, Dropping the Lucifuge from his birth name as having three last names was a mouthful. Grayfia was alright with that, since unless he planned to resurrect the Lucifuge family he wouldn't need to be known as a Lucifuge.

"Oh please just call me Emiko."

"I'm with my wife on this one, unless I'm at work I don't like being adressed as Mr. It makes me feel much older so call me Iseki"

"If that's the case then call me Sirzechs please. Grayfia and I owe you so much for adopting our son after he was kidnapped."

At this point the men both turned back to Issei who was in the middle of a mini panic attack as he still had an hour before the date but knew it was going to take twenty minutes to get there.

"Okay then Issei, what you wear depends on two things. One, what you two are doing for your date and Two, how far do you want to go?" Iseki said in an attempt to help calm the boy down.

"We're going on a movie date. That new Pokemon movie just came out and I remember Sona talked about wanting to see it. After that I plan to take her out to diner then make sure she gets home safely." Issei explained as he calmed down, though he was still breathing a little heavily so Grayfia moved over to put a hand on his back, secretly draining some of his ice magic and making the two powers inside him hide a little deeper as they were forced back from the surface.

"Alright and how far do you want to go? Do you want to start slow and just get to first base? Or do you want to see if you can get to second or even third base? Or do you think you can go all the way?"

"Papa!" Issei groaned out embarrassed. Sirzechs and Iseki both blinked for a moment before smiling. Iseki was 'dad' and he was 'papa'. They could live with that.

"Thanks to the marriage contract that her parents agree to, she is your fiancee Issei. It would make sense for you to eventually go that far" Iseki and Emiko both blinked at that statement.

"Since when have they been engaged?!" Emiko questioned bewildered.

"Sona is from a very prominent family. As a matter of fact, from the moment her mother knew she was having a baby girl there were families coming to her and asking for her daughters hand in marriage. Grayfia and I were approached similarly when we found out we were having a son, though we turned them all down wanting our son to be free. But Sona's older sister Serafall is the only one in her family that's very protective of her so they agreed to one."

"But when she found out about the marriage she declared she would only marry someone smarter than her and beat the fellow in chess breaking the agreement. After that she made a contract with her parents that the first person who could win against her in chess would be her fiancee… Apparently last year on the first day of school Issei managed to beat her."

"Wait you've been engaged for a year and haven't told us?" Iseki questioned Issei, leading the boy to sigh.

"I didn't find out until earlier today. Sona was having trouble finding a way to tell me. But one of her older sister's bodyguards came to check on her, so she asked the bodyguard to find mama" Issei said gesturing towards Grayfia before continuing "Because she thought that mama would be able to help with my illness. Neither of us were expecting mama to be.. well to be mama. Then papa accidentally mentioned the marriage contract."

Grayfia and Emiko smiled as they listened, noticing the same thing Sirzechs and Iseki did earlier. Grayfia was 'mama' and Emiko was 'mom' just like Sirzechs was 'papa' and Iseki was 'dad'.

"Crap, I've only got twenty minutes to get ready!" Issei panicked after checking his watch.

"Calm down, honey. Ignore your dads, let's go get you ready" Emiko said leading him back to his room. Emiko sighed, as she figured out what to do. She asked Grayfia to do up Issei's hair, while she found him an outfit. Sirzechs and Iseki just stood in the doorway watching the women while chatting.

As he watched his wife deal with the boy's hair Sirzechs noticed just how similar it was to his mothers side of the family.

"You definitely inherited the Bael family hair. Mother has a lighter version but it seems you got the full brunt of it."

"So my hair comes from my paternal grandmother?"

"Yup. Her side of the family is nothing but brunettes. My red hair comes from my dad. Him, me, my little sister, and Millicas your younger brother all have the red hair from the Gremory line." Issei frowned once he finally realized why the Gremory name sounded familiar.

"Your little sister wouldn't happen to be named Rias would she?"

"Yes. I take it you've met her at school?"

"Wait, you mean that red headed girl that pretended to be your friend, but once she found out you were adopted started spreading rumors around the school?" Emiko asked as she frowned recalling the girl.

"If your referring to the rumors that I'm an orphan, and a perverted sexual deviant then yes. Most of the school believes those rumors. As it stands the kendo club, student council, Rias's friend Koneko, and two teachers are the only ones that don't believe those rumors. I've actually been attacked by some of the other guys at school, and the teachers ignore it."

"She was raised better than that! I'll be having some words with her tomorrow… But for right now let's forget about her and finish getting you ready for your date" Sirzechs nearly growled out after hearing what his oldest son had to put up with at school.

"Don't do anything, it'll just get worse if she thinks I went around her and told you"

"She tries anything else and I'm making sure she gets outed as the family heiress."

Grayfia finally finished smoothing his hair out a bit so it wasn't as wild looking before letting him get up and get changed into the outfit Emiko had picked out. Issei quickly dressed himself in the black pants and dark yet dull blue button up shirt, with an emerald green vest.

"I've only got five minutes to spare, so I've got to go. Love you mom, mama, dad, papa!" Issei said running out of the room after glancing at his clock.

"How… How can he already say he loves us? He barely knows us, and we've missed so much of his life?" Grayfia questioned as she broke down tears forming in her eyes. Sirzechs wrapped an arm around his wife as Emiko explained to the two just how special those that become his friends or family are to Issei. She even pointed out how Rias's friend Koneko, the girl he mentioned earlier that didn't believe the rumors being spread about him was basically his little sister as she told the two about how they met.

Emiko also told the two about how girls flock to Issei and his talent as an artist and musical gift. Saying she was surprised after hearing that he was finally going to go on a date with Sona.

"I was already preparing to lock the two in the supply closet and keep them in there until they kissed!"

"She would actually do it to! Some how neither one of them noticed when everyone around them did."

"I've know Sona since she was a newborn. She was born the same year as my little sister Rias after all. But Sona's older sister Serafall took to the role of big sister so quickly and emphatically. I remember one time her parents had been out on a business meeting when Serafall and I needed to have a meeting with two others. She brought Sona in her carrier straight into the room, set her down on the table in front of her, and almost shouted that her adorable baby sister Sona was going to be helping her at the meeting because and I quote 'She is the most adorable thing in the universe and I will flay them alive if anyone says otherwise' it was hilarious."

"Do you have any other stories you could share about Issei's fiancee? I'd love to know more about her?"

"Sure, but only if you share stories about Issei while we spy on their date!"

The two men chatted away as they walked out of the house to follow their son at a distance. Emiko and Grayfia shook their heads at two and their antics sharing a small smile at how alike they were, before following after the two realizing the need to keep them in check so that they couldn't ruin the date.

 **Meanwhile with Sona**

"Damn. Everything looks too nice and fancy for a move date..." Sona grumbled as she started panicking while sorting through her wardrobe in her room in the underworld. Serafall had teleported the two straight there so as to inform their parents about Sona's fiancee.

"Big sis!" Sona called out, admitting defeat and wanting help in picking an outfit.

Serafall rushed to her aide as Sona completely ignored the fact her sister was infamous for her cosplaying and would likely try to get her into a magical girl costume. Sona explained her issue to her sister.

"Alright then, let's find you an outfit to woo your husband!"

"Sis! We're not even married yet!" Sona squeaked out feeling embarrassed.

"Hush! He's just as protective of you as I am. I approve of him, and so you're married… But if he hurts you I'll freeze him." Serafall repsonded cheerfully, but Sona knew she was serious as she recalled an incident from a few years ago.

The last time someone tried to harm Sona she was spending the day with her big sister. Sona didn't get a chance to react before the fool had been flash frozen and left in the garden as a warning. Serafall had also made a sign that read 'This is what will happen to anyone that dares to try and harm my sister! - Signed Serafall Leviathan.' Serafall's peerage had added a P.S. on the end that stated this result was only if their king got to the person first.

Sona sighed as her sister walked into her closet and studied her clothes. Serafall snapped her finger and called for her second bishop, Akane. She called for Akane because before becoming a devil she was a beautician and knew how best to style Sona's hair for a date.

"So how far do you want to go with him" Serafall asked her sister as she sorted through outfits.

"BIG SISTER!" Sona shouted in embarrassment once more.

"What? I need to know if I should go for sexy and smoldering, or cute and cuddly."

"I want to look like me, not some prostitute!" Sona responded somewhat sharply, wincing when Serafall instantly put a few outfits back.

"Akane remind me to burn whatever clothes she just put back… Sis, if you put me in a magical girl outfit I will not let you hug me at all no matter who is around for month!" Sona stated making Serafall turn around and put a few things back once more. After a moment Serafall settled on her choice and handed the clothes over to Sona telling her to try them on.

Sona did and was pleased with the look. A dark blue shirt with diagonal textured stripes of green, a solid green pleated skirt that reached down just past her knees and headband with a teal colored flower.

"This looks perfect! Thanks big sis,"

"You look so adorable Sona!" Serafall cheered lunging forward to wrap her sister in a hug.

"Oh, I almost forgot. I convinced Ajuka to make you some contacts that could contain your power just like your glasses do." Serafall said as she handed Sona a special case that held the contacts.

Sona thanked her sister, and asked her to thank Ajuka for her as she opened the container. Removing her glasses Sona kept her right eye closed as her left eye returned to normal, a red bird appearing in the light purple iris. Sona slowly put in a contact over her eye and it shifted back to being violet once again hiding one of her secrets, and trump cards for dealing with possible enemies her Geass Eye.

This was the reason despite having the same training as her sister, Sona's water magic was not advanced enough to easily control ice as well. She spent more time learning to control and use her Eye magic, inherited from her mothers side of the family.

Blinking to adjust her eye, once Sona was satisfied that her Geass eye's power was contained, she looked away from Serafall and Akane as she opened her other eye to finish putting in the contacts. She turned away because she was unique in the fact that she has not just one type of eye magic, but two. Sona's right eye housed her Gorgon Eye, which she struggled to control. She had better control over her Geass Eye but could use both of them at similar levels. Ajuka being the scientist he is, claims she struggles with her Gorgon Eye because it's magic is much more potent in the fact that she is able to use it to freeze even Ultimate class devils wit ease.

Hesitating to see if her Gorgon Eye has been contained Sona slowly turned around, pleasantly surprised to find that it was. Sona happily hugged her sister once more as thanks, though she wondered if she should reveal her eye magic to her own peerage since Ajuika, Serafall, Serafall's queen and bishops, and her parents were the only people that knew.

"Now you are ready for your date!" Serafall cheered only to be interrupted when they realized she was running late.

"No, I've got to hurry or he'll think I stood him up!" Sona said teleporting away in a rush.

After a moment Serafall's queen Mukuro, stepped into the room sharing a look with Akane.

"We're watching over her date aren't we?"

"Of course! We've got to make sure it goes perfectly!" Serafall responded as she masked their devilish presence, after all Sona would be mad enough to turn her Gorgon Eye on them. That thing was over powered!

* * *

S.R: Here ya go. Next up will be the date, but that's it. I don't want to mix the date and the chapter after into one, it just doesn't seem right to do it that way.

Issei: So the next chapter will be a shorter one?

S.R: I'll try to lengthen the date so that it won't be too short of a chapter.


	5. The Date and A Ring

S.R: Why… Why must I have poor impulse control?

Issei: Because it shows you enjoy this story and what you are doing with it?

S.R: **narrows eyes** No comments from the peanut gallery.

Issei: Hey I'm just a figment of your imagination. At this point this conversation is just an argument going on inside your head.

S.R: Okay then. Hey me? **taps on the side of my head** Just letting you know, I hate it when you use logic against me.

Issei: So are we done showing off your insanity to the readers now?

S.R: I guess… Okay dear readers please ignore this and continue on to the story.

Reminder below:

"rawr" - speaking

' _rawr_ ' - thoughts/ telepathy

"rawr" - emphasized word

" **rawr** " - beast talking

' _ **rawr**_ ' - beast thinking

* * *

Sona had stopped just outside of the movie theater to fix her hair as it had been tossed about in the wind as she ran to the theater from the location she had teleported to. When she entered the building though she quickly spotted Issei being cornered by a few first year students from the school. Thanks to being a devil she had better hearing than a human and could listen in on what they were saying as she approached.

"You said you were waiting on someone Issei. I don't see anyone with you. Were you stood up?"

"I doubt that. Knowing her, she'll be here shortly. She was probably caught up talking with her older sister about this date."

"If she doesn't show you could always come with us. I don't think we'd mind sharing." One spoke getting nods from her friends. Sona's eye's flashed demonically for a second before she restrained herself. It wouldn't be good for her to attack someone just for making her jealous.

"Sorry if I made you wait Issei."

"Speak of the devil and she shall appear. Anyway no not really Sona. You look stunning." Issei responded to the girl quickly making his way to her side, though they both had to hold back a chuckle at his statement.

"Oh, I made this for you" Issei said as he handed Sona a rose made of ice.

"Wait a second! You've been here waiting almost half an hour for her Issei. Is that all you have to say student council President? Besides where are your glasses?"

"It doesn't matter how long I waited. I'd wait as long as I needed to so long as she looks great, which she does. Besides she's obviously wearing contacts."

At that Issei tried to steer Sona away from the girls that were starting to harass her, hoping to get away without an issue.

"Sorry Issei, big sis had gotten me some contacts for the date and I needed time to put them in properly."

"That's fine, I kinda figured something like that would hap-" Issei was cut off when Sona was pushed from behind. She hit the floor with her knees but one of her contacts had fallen out. Not noticing right away Sona turned around to speak to the girls and they froze in place. Issei offered her a hand and helped her stand up. It wasn't until he was looking directly into her eyes and mentioned how beautiful they were that she realized what had happened and quickly shut them.

"Why did you close your eyes. They look beautiful no matter the color." Sona just meekly pointed behind him at the girls that were frozen.

"Wait, you can do that with your eyes? That's pretty cool! Though I don't think we can leave them like that. How about we manipulate their memories then unfreeze them."

They did exactly that and then started searching for her contact.

"You weren't affected… by my eye."

"Was I supposed to be or something?"

"Yeah… I… I don't have complete control over it yet. Any time I look at someone they freeze as if turned to stone. I've had it happen to Ultimate class devils too. I can reverse it but… It's hard without complete control."

At this point Issei stiffened as he heard a voice speaking in his head. The voice was non other than the dragon that slept within his sacred gear. Issei had known about Ddraig since he was young due to Aunt Grizelda. He had mentioned it to Sona before, but no one else knew exactly which sacred gear Issei had.

' _ **Hey partner. I just woke up after feeling a pretty powerful magic wash over us. I'm guessing some kind of petri**_ _ **fication**_ _ **or freezing**_ _ **magic. It won't work on us though since before being sealed I was one of the 10 strongest beings in existence.**_ _'_

' _So it won't affect me because it can't affect you? That's good to know. By the way, It was Sona that you felt. Apparently she has_ _a_ _Gorgon Eye_ _for eye_ _magic'_

' _ **Yeah, I knew about that actually. I can tell you every ability and magic she has, but I won't because You would prefer to hear it from her. Speaking of did you finally get it through you head that she liked you back?**_ _'_

' _Oh shut up.'_

Issei grumbled at the dragon before relaying to Sona what he just learned from Ddraig. She found her contact as he spoke and nodded at the explanation as she stood back up and went to the bathroom to put her contact back in. When she came back out Issei mentioned that he had gotten them some popcorn to share and a drink for each of them. After he handed Sona her drink the two went and claimed their seats.

About half way through the movie a song started to play, that was really catchy. Sona leaded over to tell Issei about it and the fact she was looking up the lyrics when she got home.

"You can sing?"

"I might just sing for you one day if your lucky" Sona said as she winked. After a few moments some guy behind them shouted out that the movie was Bullshit. Issei told him if he didn't like it he could leave. They heard the man being confronted and pulled out of the theater before he could make a bigger ass of himself. But Sona noticed who it was that pulled the guy out.

"We're being spied on."

"More than one person actually. Both my birth parents and adoptive parents are here. That was Papa that took the guy out of the room." At that moment a really sad event just happened on screen that made someone in the very back start sobbing.

"That's big sis. She's probably got a few peerage members here to."

"Well we can ignore them. Or we can prank them by making them think we are going further than we actually are and let their dirty minds do the rest."

"Option B please… Here put your arm over my should real casually" With that the two teenagers continued to watch the film, hiding the smirks at their stalkers reactions to every little thing they did. Eventually the movie was over and Issei escorted Sona to a nice little restaurant.

"This place caters to the supernatural, so you don't have to hide it" Issei said to her as he held the door open for the girl. Once he walked in though he was tackled into a hug.

"Oh, what's this you finally got a girlfriend to bring over here Issei?" The older woman that was hugging him said as she stepped back and noticed Sona.

"Hello. I'm Sona Sitri."

"It's nice to meet you dearie, I'm Anabel." the lady introduced herself as a small girl with white hair walked over to the trio. The small girl was non other than Koneko, the one member of Rias's peerage that Issei was friends with.

"Ise, you're on a date with Sona?"

"Yup."

"Fucking finally" the girl replied, making Anabel laugh as Issei and Sona faceplamed. On the far side of the restaurant a group of adults smiled and chuckled at the girls words as well. Said adults were both sets of Issei's parents, thought the teen didn't notice.

"Ise is my big brother, so don't hurt him. If you do.." Koneko said before he fist lashed out against the wall cracking it pretty badly. Anabel called one of the other staff members over and using a bit of magic the wall was instantly repaired. After that she lead Koneko away to get some sweets.

"And I thought my sister was protective… Mind if I ask how you're so close with Koneko though? I mean the rest of Rias's peerage hates you."

"I saw some guys trying to force her out on a date with them, and kicked their asses. Then I took her out for ice cream just to make sure she wasn't scared and traumatized. After that she started hanging around me a lot. You could almost say she became my shadow. We set up a room at my house for her to stay in any time she needs to get away from Rias. Mom and dad also adore her, unofficially adopting her to be my little sister."

"Well… that explains a lot actually. But where did you learn about this place? I didn't know there were places for the supernatural."

"Aunt Grizelda brought me here once before she went away to train some younger exorcists. There are all kinds of places for the supernatural. Restaurants, stores, hell there are clubs to."

"That's good to know. Maybe next time we can check out some of those other places?"

"Sure. Oh, I almost forgot." Issei said as he had felt something shift in is pocket.

"this is something else I made for you. I figured you wouldn't want something dramatic and grandiose so I went somewhat casual." Issei spoke as he handed the box from his pocket to the girl across from him.

"Well you know me. Unless it's too good to pass up I hate unneeded dramatics. If it's too good to miss then I'll add to it. Issei… This… Are you..?" Sona started as she opened the box only to be speechless as she saw what was inside.

Inside the box was a ring. The ring was a black band with tendrils of icy blue wrapping and twisting up towards a rose that was just as black as the ring. Sitting in the center of the rose was a circle of small round blue gems that surrounded a larger heart shaped green gem.

"Well we are engaged right? I made that ring to symbolize the engagement. The icy blue veins and the small round gems were all made courtesy of my ice magic. The green gem in the middle is a fragment from the gem on my Boosted Gear. Ddraig didn't mind giving me a fragment to use since he adores you, though it helps that it can be repaired after a while. But since it has some of my magic in it the ring can act as a warning system. It can also create a barrier for you, and so long as you have it on your person I can use it to find you faster. Thanks to the fragment from Ddraig which is a Jade by the way, you also have an immunity to poisons so long as you're wearing it."

"Thank you Issei… and yes.. a hundred times yes… even without the contract I'd say yes!" Sona said slipping the ring onto her finger as a few tears started to fall.

Before Issei could say anything, she yanked him by his shirt across the table and kissed him. They drifted off into their own world as they kissed, unaware of the wolf whistles and cheering from not just their 'spies' but everyone else in the restaurant. Though one of the adults that had been following the two had the thought to take a picture. When they finally broke apart they both panted for breath.

"You know, you could start using my nickname. We are engaged properly now."

"I thought only your family was allowed to call you Ise?"

"Family would include my bride to be, which is you so..."

"Alright smart-ass."

"You know I really do love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

S.R: Quick spot the differences! Just kidding I'm not that mean... I really only changed the ring and added a small conversation after the kiss. Also at this point Ignore my statement of one update a day till I've caught up. I have poor impulse control and will likely have the next chapter up before the day is over.


	6. Things Are Looking Up?

S.R: To the person reviewing with the name Bell. I can't respond as a P.M. so I'll do it this way:

"i read original and are you going to follow it or make it different and don't change isseis name from original issei lucius lucifug-gremori" Please, remember names are capitalized. I don't want to sound rude there but It's a pet peeve of mine. Other than that, my answer is that for now I am only changing minor things, but there will be differences as the story progresses. Changing Issei's name was one of the changes I planned from the get go, mostly because to me if he is still going to be known as Issei and Hyoudou is still part of his name, then it makes sense for the name to stay as constant as possible. There's more to his name than that but, if I say anything else it'll be spoilers so I'll shut up on that.

Issei: Anything else to say before getting on with the story?

S.R: Nope. Read on people.

* * *

"Hey Issei, I heard you finally went on a date with Sona" Katasse, one of Issei's friends and classmates called out to him as he walked through the school gate.

"Yeah, though I got there early… Speaking of, there were a few first year girls trying to flirt with me while was waiting."

"Oh, I see our work finally paid off."

"What do you mean?"

"Well… Murayama, a few other girls from the kendo club, and I finally got tired of all the rumors about you that were going around the school. We... May, or may not have countered them by saying whoever started the rumors was just pissed off at you for turning them down due to your crush on Sona."

"Katasse… You didn't have to do that, though it seems to have worked since there are a few girls glaring at you right now. They probably think you are trying to flirt with me."

"Oh if I could be so lucky… But I know you've only got eyes for the student council President."

 **Timeskip To Lunch**

' _Ddraig, remind me to tell Katasse and Murayama their plan worked a lot better than expected'_

' _ **Well that's more of my fault. Since you are my host you have the same charisma as a dragon and draw people to you.'**_

Issei groaned as an answer to the dragon, before noticing the large following he had. After counting to twenty and not being anywhere close to the correct number he gave up on trying to find out just how many girls were following him and braced himself to answer their questions. Luckily a friend intervened drawing their attention momentarily. That friend was Koneko, and she grabbed his hand drawing surprised gasps from the girls that were watching.

"Hurry up big bro, big sister is waiting for you." Koneko spoke getting the girls watching to relax again now that they knew she wasn't a rival for his affection.

"You're calling Sona big sister now? Just last night you threatened to flatten her."

"You proposed to her after that."

Behind them the crowd of girls screamed 'WHAT?' in confusion. Most of them had gone wide eyed and stopped walking mid step.

"What's with the noise?" Sona asked as she burst out of the student council's office.

"Well big sister, they just learned that Ise is not available anymore." Sona did a double take at Koneko's words confused for a moment before she saw the sobbing girls in the hallway.

"President Sona do you know who Issei proposed to? Please tell me it's not some big chested girl that's impossible to contend with!"

"I don't know about impossible" Sona muttered, clearly seeming self conscious.

"Don't worry Sona no one can take me from you."

"Big brother proposed to you. He's loyal, and won't betray you. Unless you betray him first you have nothing to worry about" Koneko bluntly stated making the sobbing girls freeze once more before noticing the ring on Sona's hand.

"Little sis, is right you know. You want to eat with us Koneko?"

"Rias is mad right now thanks to some news earlier. It's best to stay away for now. I want to see the ring too." Koneko nodded as she spoke, her eyes glancing towards Sona's hand.

Sona adjusted her hand so Koneko could see the ring better.

"Ise, you have good taste in jewlery."

"Come on you two, let's go eat lunch." Issei spoke leading the two past the student council office.

After a moment the girls that had been following Issei finally unfroze. For a moment they could do nothing but fall to their knees and blink rapidly.

"ISSEI IS ENGAGED TO STUDENT COUNCIL PRESIDENT SONA!" they wailed.

The trio ignored the crying girls and made their way up to the roof intent on enjoying the weather.

"Good afternoon my son" Grayfia spoke as she stepped out of a magic circle scaring the crap out of the three teens, before giving Issei a hug.

"Hi mama" Issei hugged her back, before she turned to look at Koneko.

"My oldest son treats you as a little sister and you are a member of my sister in-laws peerage. Feel free to call me your mother or however you want to say it." She then hugged the cat like girl. Moving her attention to Sona she spoke again.

"I approve of you and your engagement with my oldest son. You can also call me your mother or however you prefer to say it."

"You probably didn't come here just to tell us this… mama." Koneko spoke, though she paused as she decided which way she wanted to call the woman mother. She finished speaking with a smile on her face happy to have a motherly figure as she was far too young when her true mother died to have any memories.

"That's true my daughter. I came to get Issei and take him to Ajuka. We're hoping he can find out why and how Issei has a sacred gear along with find a possible way to help with his illness. Not to mention he is a High class devil. That means he needs to get his evil pieces."

"Ajuka?"

"He's one of the Four Satan's along side my big sister and your dad. Since he's a genius Ajuka is head of the technology department." Sona offered to the confused Issei.

"We only have half an hour mama."

"That's plenty of time, for a check up and to get you registered. Your evil pieces won't be ready until later this afternoon though. I will take us straight there however as Ajuka is easily distracted by his work so it's better for us to make him notice us quickly. You two can come along if you want." Sona and Koneko nodded at Grayfia's offer, after which she made a magic circle underneath all four of them.

"Ajuka sir are you here?" The older woman called out addressing him as sir since she was still technically on duty as a maid.

"As requested I'm here Grayfia. Now can I ask why you- Interesting. These massive powers of conflicting origins. I can see why brought him for evil pieces and a check up. Come on in."

"Ajuka may seem a bit scary and serious but he's very kind. He likes to create things more than do his job as a Satan but he is more serious about it that big sis is."

"He's an older brother as well. Given how rare it is for most devils to have siblings you'll find that he like all the other older siblings are fiercely protective of younger devils."

"That makes sense. After all the oldest sibling is there to help and protect the younger siblings."

"I just can't wait until Friday when we can bring you to the Gremory household and you can finally meet Millicas. Just don't be like your father or Serafall. Those two are hardcore sis-cons."

"Wait this is like Takumi?! You finally found him?"

Grayfia explained how she and Sirzechs had finally found their oldest son thanks to Sona. She also mentioned his situation.

"Ajuka may be your dad's rival but they're best friends. If you want to harm one you have to go through the other."

"True, but don't forget we protect you too Sona. I mean we've known you since you were a month old. But onto why we are here. This won't hurt Takumi but I do need you to stand still for moment."

"He's gone by Issei for most of his life now, Ajuka sir. But he decided to make Takumi his middle name."

"Grayfia we've been friends for ages, please stop calling me sir when you aren't on duty."

Noting the confusing on Issei's face she explained how after he was kidnapped she needed something to do, so she became the head maid for the Gremory household. Issei nodded knowing what it was like to need something to do.

"Well then while we wait for the scan results let's get started on your evil pieces. Sound good nephew?"

"The Four Satan's are really close. They're basically their own family. Which would make him your dad's brother. That's why he's calling you nephew." Sona whispered in Issei's ear so that he wouldn't be confused.

"Sounds good to me then uncle." Issei responded to Ajuka causing the older man to smile.

"Just answer with what comes to mind first…. What is your element?"

"Dragonfire and ice."

"Favorite colors?"

"Violet and gold" Issei responded after glancing at Sona as she snuggled into his side and rest his head on her shoulder. Sona caught on to the fact his favorite colors were the same as her eyes, and doubted it was a coincidence.

Ajuka smiled at the young couple as Sona blushed after hearing Issei's favorite colors. He decided that he was going to tell his fellow Satan's about that later. They'd probably tease the girl until she threatened to use her eyes on them. Though Ajuka and Sirzechs might be safe as there was a possibility they were too strong for her magic to work on them.

"What is your symbol?"

"A rose but the petals are scales"

At this point Sona shifted a hand to Issei's head and started running it through his hair. This act had Issei relaxing and lulled him nearly to sleep. He was feeling that comfortable cuddling with the girl he loves, her fingers combing through his hair. It helped that he was already tired due to having an attack earlier.

"How would you see your peerage?"

"As Family, like my own siblings. They'd be people to protect and admired." Sona, Koneko, and Grayfia all smiled. Ajuka had a grin as well, Issei was just like his father.

"Okay we're at the last two questions. What would you do for those that are precious to you?

"I'd do anything for them."

"And the last question. What do you think of Serafall Leviathan?" Ajuka asked. He had a grin because this last question was meant as a trick to mess with people as a joke. The majority of the responses he normally received were praise and awe, or lustful thoughts. The latter of the two normal answers typically caused Ajuka to flare his power just a bit since he was looking out for his friend.

Issei's response however made everyone in the room crack up. Serafall would pout forever after hearing his thoughts.

"Serafall? Pardon my language here but I think she's bat shit crazy."

* * *

S.R: The only reason this chapter is shorter than the others is because I wanted to end it there. I had to take a minute to reel myself back in after writing it because I couldn't stop giggling. Any who it's like 6am and I haven't gone to sleep yet. I'm either going to crash after I post this or go eat breakfast and come back to work on the next chapter.


	7. Death, Revival, and A Trolling Koneko

S.R: I called it. After posting that last chapter I refreshed the page to make sure it was uploaded right, commented on one review then crashed. Hard. The good news is that I'm already awake and working on the story again.

Issei: I don't know if I call that dedication, desperation, or just plane workaholic like.

S.R: Well when your boss tells you "You work too hard. You've got the next week off" what else are you going to do?

Issei: Relax? Get some extra sleep in? Bug the hell out of your wife?

S.R: I've already done that last one. But enough about me, you guys came here for the story.

ONWARD!

Reminder below:

"rawr" - speaking

' _rawr_ ' - thoughts/ telepathy

"rawr" - emphasized word

" **rawr** " - beast talking

' _ **rawr**_ ' - beast thinking

* * *

Sona had let Issei sleep through the school day once they got back. By that point the girls that had followed him earlier and learned of his engagement to Sona had started to spread the word. Matsuda and Motohama came for him wanting to hang out and secretly grill him for info.

So he left the school to hang out with his friends answering some of there questions and lightly hitting them for their more perverted ones. It wasn't long till they had made their way to a nearby park to sit, chat, and enjoy the weather even as the day started winding down. Shortly after they sat down however Issei felt like an attack had hit him, only this time it felt much worse.

As his vision started going hazy, all he could see was a fallen-angel attacking his friends.

"Man this is a good day! I get to kill two sacred gear holders, and the brat that turned me down the other day." The fallen-angel girl said with delight evident in her voice as she smiled at her actions. Once she felt certain the trio were going to die from the injuries she inflicted on them she flew off.

At this point Matsuda was already unconscious. Issei and Motohama were in pain, groaning though Motohama was able to overcome the pain to speak.

"Shit… I don't... wanna die here!"

"Then become my servant and live for me." A voice sounded from Motohama's pocket, though it echoed from Matsuda's pocket as well. Each of the boys pockets started glowing as a magic circle appeared nearby.

Stepping out from the circle was Rias Gremory. She revived the two boys and after checking to make sure they weren't going to die within the next minute turned to Issei.

"I have no interest in you… Besides think of this as a punishment. I don't know how you did it but I had my ass chewed out by my older brother over how I've treated you." As she spoke Rias stepped onto Issei's back trying to cause him more pain. Once he cried out in agony, she was satisfied and left with his friends to make sure they properly heal.

"Dammit… Mama, Papa…Koneko… Sona. I'm sorry." Issei weakly called out for his devilish loved ones. As Issei slowly faded out of consciousness his thoughts drifted.

'M _ama, papa._ _You just... got me back in your lives but… It doesn't seem like I'll… Be staying. I'm sorry I won't get to met my… little brother._ _'_

' _Koneko…_ _It looks like I can't keep being… your older brother... I'm sorry.'_

' _Sona, I'm glad I got to tell you… I love you._ '

 **Cut to Sona**

Sona was sitting in the student council office, working on some paperwork when she reeled back as if struck. She collapsed against the table in front of her clutching her hands over her heart as tears formed in her eyes.

"Sona! Are you okay?" Her queen Tsubaki asked rushing to her side. Sona could say nothing though as she fought to figure out what was wrong. A short distance away the girls heard a strange cry, one that sounded like a cat calling out.

While here peerage started wondering about the sound Sona's eyes widened in fear as she heard Issei's voice in her head. But he sounded weak and extremely frail. Sona's emotions caused her power to burst forth around her as she went into denial.

' _Sona, I'm glad I got to tell you… I love you._ '

"No, no, no! This can't be happening! I'm coming ISSEI!" She cried out as her magic teleported her away, though she didn't notice. Nor did she notice that she had managed it without a magic circle or a contract as her attention was drawn to Issei.

 **Cut To Koneko**

Koneko was walking through the school, looking for a good place to hangout and be free of her king for a while. But she felt as if something was off. It wasn't until she heard the whisper in her head that she could pinpoint what was wrong.

' _Dammit… Mama, Papa… Sona… Koneko. I'm sorry_ '

"No! Please, don't leave me big brother." Koneko cried, not noticing that her Nekomata features were being shown to the world, as she frantically started running with a hope she could find Issei before it was too late. Especially after hearing _'Koneko… It looks like I can't keep being… your older brother... I'm sorry.'_

 **Cut to Grayfia and Sirzechs**

After she was off duty for the day, Grayfia along with her husband and youngest child went to visit with Ajuka. Of course their main reason was to get Issei's evil pieces. Both she and Sirzechs were smiling proudly when Ajuka handed them over, Issei was powerful enough and lucky enough to have the full set as mutated pieces.

But she stumbled as she reached for the box that held them. If it weren't for little Millicas catching the box they would have spilled out all over the floor. But she didn't notice as she clutched her chest in pain.

"Grayfia, what's wrong?!" Sirzechs asked wrapping an arm around his wife.

"I don't know… I just felt like… like a light spear had hit m-" Grayfia trailed off her eyes going wide like Sirzechs and little Millicas as they heard.

' _Dammit… Mama, Papa… Sona… Koneko. I'm sorry_ '

Tears poured out of Grayfia's eyes as she begged whoever would listen, not to take her oldest.

'M _ama, papa._ _You just... got me back in your lives but… It doesn't seem like I'll… Be staying. I'm sorry I won't get to met my… little brother._ _'_

"Not when we just got him back. Please, no" Sirzechs asked sounding slightly broken.

Millicas on the other hand was curious as to who the voice was wondering if it was his older brother they had told him about. He also wanted to know why they sounded like there were in pain. Ajuka not having heard the voice knew something was wrong.

"We have to find Issei quickly! I left a contract on his hand just in case. Give me his king piece quickly!"

Millicas did just as Ajuka asked and the man was gone in a flash.

 **Back To Issei**

Issei was unconscious just lying there on the ground nearly dead when Sona got to him which was roughly the same time as Koneko stumbled upon him… The two tried everything they could think of even using the two mutated rooks that Sona's sister had given her. But all they did was glow dully.

"Issei please, we just got together don't leave me now!" Sona screamed at the boy's body, tears falling rapidly. Koneko crying as well, as she pleaded with her brotherly figure not to die. They only vaguely noticed the magic circle appear as Ajuka stepped out of it.

Kneeling down he placed Issei's king piece with Sona's rooks, right over the boys heart. Together the three pieces started shining before they sank into his chest. Sona shakily started the chant to revive a person as Ajuka made a note of the fact that it took three mutated pieces, one of which was a king no less to revive his friends son.

Once she was done with the incantation Sona lowered her head to Issei's chest and let out a relieved breath upon hearing his heart beat once more. Satisfied that he wasn't dead she leaned up and placed a kiss on his forehead while Koneko lightly hugged the boy's body.

"Let's get him back somewhere safe and comfortable so you can use skin healing on him. I'll go let Grayf-" Ajuka started to say before a wave of power knocked him back though he noted Sona and Koneko weren't affected. But he didn't mind because he knew that the power was Issei's just from the icy hot feeling it caused.

As he looked at the boy Ajuka watched in fascination, Issei's hair in spots started to lighten up as streaks of silver began showing through. Due to his keen eye Ajuka also noticed that Issei's skin darkened up, only enough to be noticeable if someone was looking for changes and even then they'd have to have a very keen eye. He also noted that Issei's body grew a couple inches and his muscles became more defined and toned.

His ice and dragonfire started swirling around him as they combined and made steam for a moment, but Ajuka didn't care about that. He was happy to see that Issei's powers were finally balanced as the left half of his body was covered in red dragon scales, while the right have was coated in a fine layer of ice. Issei's body shifted for a moment before two sets of wings grew out of his back. One demonic set that was slightly larger than your average devils wings. The other set was draconic in appearance though they were in rough shape, Ajuka guessed that was part of the dragon in Issei's sacred gear trying to manifest. Right as Ajuka finished the thought Issei's wings retracted and his body wen back to normal.

"That certainly was interesting."

"Ajuka, you have a talent for understating things."

"Why thank you. Anyway I'll go let Grayfia and Sirzechs know, while you go use the skin method."

Sona nodded to the older devil as she cradled her fiancee against her chest before disappearing in a flash of water.

"I don't think she even realizes what she just did… I swear every time I see her she gets stronger and stronger." Ajuka mumbled to himself slightly shocked at the fact Sona just teleported away without a magic circle or contract. Chuckling to himself as he used his own magic circle Ajuka was glad to see that things were looking up for his family.

Koneko sighed as she was left alone, but not wanting to be left behind took off at a sprint for Issei's home.

 **The Next Morning**

Sunlight streamed through the window landing directly on Issei's face causing him to awaken, only to snap complete awake once he felt the undoubtedly female body pressing against his own.

"S-S-Sona?!"

"Morning Ise." Sona responded as she sleepily rubbed her Gorgon eye while smiling at the boy.

"Good morning to you to. But uh, why are we both naked in my bed? I'm fairly certain I died."

Sona gave the boy a glare at the reminder, lightly slapping his check.

"That's for nearly dying on me! You scared me half to death when I felt you get stabbed… I almost broke down completely when I heard your thoughts. Honestly I thought I'd lost you."

"Sorry about that, I didn't expect to be attacked so openly like that. I didn't mean to scare you."

"I know,but you are real lucky your evil pieces were finished. Oh and that Ajuka was smart enough to put a contract on your hand just in case. If he hadn't shown up..." Sona responded tears welling in her eyes again.

Issei wiped the tears away with his thumbs before pulling the girl close and pressing his lips to her hair. They both knew he didn't mean to worry her like that.

"Just… Don't ever do that to me again please. Don't die on me… I don't care what I have to do if it'll keep you from doing that again. Even if it means we get married right here, right now. Or if you want to have a child and get me pregnant." Sona blushed as she spoke, but she was being honest with Issei.

Issei just held the girl close as she spoke, listening to her pleas and promising he would stay by her side as long as she wanted him to. Neither one caring about anything else in the world at at that time.

"Oh, before I forget, now that you're a full devil your illness should be gone!" Sona said after she realized she was rambling. Before Issei could respond his bedroom door opened to reveal his adoptive mother Emiko who promptly turned around calling out to her husband.

"DEAR, ISSEI'S IN BED NAKED WITH HIS FIANCEE!"

"THAT'S MY BOY! IT SEEMS LIKE WE'LL HAVE GRANDKIDS IN NO TIME!"

"GRANDKIDS?!" she squawked out, her face showing the teens she was torn between terror and happiness at the thought. Issei and Sona were blushing at the exchange, though if asked they would say there was no place else they'd rather be.

Eventually things settled down and Sona went home to get a change of clothes before lounging about with her fiancee. Issei took that time to go get a shower and clean up, but stumbled after seeing himself in the mirror.

He first noticed the change to his hair, which after admiring for a moment he decided he liked. But then he noticed something that really threw him off. His eyes had changed colors too. Before they were a warm chocolaty brown, But now they had the elongated vertical slit of a pupil that was common in lizards. That wasn't what shocked him however. The thing that did it was that his eyes were now the same shade of violet as Sona's but upon looking closer he had golden flecks scattered throughout the violet.

While he was in the shower Issei chatted with Ddraig, who for some reason he felt a stronger connection to now. Ddraig, explained that the eyes changing was more from his influence but he told Issei if he focused he could make them turn back, but Issei decided to keep the color and hide the lizard like pupil while around humans.

 **Timeskip**

Issei was excused from school for the rest of the week after that, Sona and the student council had his attendance labeled as excused to due to recovering from a stabbing. The week after was spring break, and the two engaged teens spent as much of it together as possible, mostly lounging about and playing chess or cudlding.

Issei had spent a bit of time with Ajuka, who gave him the results of of his previous check up before saying that everything had changed for the better now that he was a devil. Even having the older devil point out that since his powers had stabilized and weren't fighting he should feel a stronger connection with the sacred gear. But he wasn't at top form yet, as his body had to fully recover from the 16 years of strain on it from before he became a devil once more.

Ajuka also explained that even though it took Sona's rooks on top of Issei's king piece, it was because the king piece was the last one added that he technically is not a part of her peerage. He simplified it by saying peerages are basically master servant relationships, but because of how things worked out their situation is more of a partnership. As such he could deny appearing as part of her peerage during a rating game if he chose, but Issei ignored that as he knew he'd always be there to help her.

He also spent quite a bit of time in the underworld finally getting to meet his younger brother. Grayfia had taken quite a few photos of the two playing around and getting to know each other. Issei did his best to spoil Millicas without going overboard, and enjoyed his time with the boy.

Due to that no one from school outside of Sona's peerage had seen the boy. Thus his friends were relieved to see him walk through the school gates holding hands and smiling with Sona. Matsuda and Motohama were both very happy to see their friend was okay and teased him about the new look.

Speaking of the two, Issei did mention to Sona how Rias had appeared and revived them before leaving him to die. Needless to say Sona was pissed for that, and quickly informed her sister and Sirzechs, the two also becoming enraged at Rias's actions. But Issei had managed to get them to hold off on punishing the girl, as he knew after meeting his paternal grandparents she'd be in even deeper water and it would be better to get all the punishments done at the same time. That was set up for later on in the week after his grandfather the current head of the house returned to the underworld from his business trip.

Back to his two friends and their greetings, Issei was interested in hearing about their new abilities.

"Hey did you see that power testing thing going around online? The one that told you how many chess pieces you're worth and what kind of powers you should have in that devil game that just came out? Apparently I'm a king piece, and I should have both ice magic and dragonfire."

It took the two a minute to catch on, before they realized he was giving them a safe way to talk about their devil powers in public.

"Nice man. I only got four pawns, though I think the absorption ability I should have sounds pretty cool."

"I got four pawns too. It's kinda funny how my ability is the opposite of yours though Motohama. I should have a reflecting ability apparently."

Sona was mildly impressed with the two, though after hearing their abilities she was able to realized why Rias and her peerage thought that Issei's power was coming from the two perverts instead.

"That's pretty interesting. Like Ise, I got a king piece. But I've got water magic and some eye abilities."

Matsuda and Motohama both looked at her surprised for a moment before the lunged for Issei attempting to pull him into a hug as they tease the boy. They were blocked by Sona, though she apologized after realizing their intent.

"Should I expect you to be even more overprotective for a bit?"

"Not just me, but yes."

"That's true I guess, but they aren't the ones that said they'd do anything as long as I didn't get myself killed."

"Just because it's true doesn't mean you have to embarrass me by telling everyone!"

At this point Issei noticed Koneko walking up and waved her over. Koneko walked over with a wink towards Issei, letting him know she was in a playful mood. She could sense that the two still hadn't done anything but she couldn't resist the joke.

Issei and Sona both went bright red, as the students around them were stunned, jaws hitting the ground. The student council couldn't help but laugh, falling to the floor in their giggling fits or leaning on each other for support. Koneko was having trouble holding the laughter in, though only people with really sharp eyes would notice her shaking in silent laughter.

Placing one hand gently on Sona's tummy she innocently looked up and asked the older girl "Does it have to do with mom and dad shouting about possibly having grandkids soon?"

After a moment her head tilted as she looked at Issei.

"Am I gonna be an aunty?"

* * *

S.R: I knew I had to leave Koneko's trolling in. I just knew it'd be too funny to pass up. But considering I knew it was coming I just couldn't stop laughing as I wrote the second half of this chapter.


	8. Punishing Rias

S.R: We are inching ever so closer to the point where everything becomes my ideas.

Issei: Inching? Dude you went from 0 to 60 in like half a second. I mean with this chapter you have caught up and passed the original story.

S.R: Fine, fine. I scrambled and rushed to get this far better?

Issei: Considering I'm just your imagination and I know what is coming? Yes, admitting the truth is much better.

S.R: Since when was I a killjoy and a spoilsport?

Issei: You only get like that with yourself, and only when you are talking to yourself.

S.R: Wait, didn't I say the readers aren't here for info about me? Why are talking about this now?

Issei: I'm going to shut up now.

S.R: Good boy. I'll give you a cookie later. Anyway let's move on to the story.

* * *

The school week had gone by quickly, though Issei and Sona played hell trying to convince the students that Koneko was just playing a prank on everyone. Other than that not much else had happened. Though Issei did warn his two perverted buddies about the coming storm for their peerage king.

Now on a Saturday with everyone gathered it was time to speak with Lord Gremory, and his wife about Rias's actions. And to reveal the fact that their lost grandson had been returned. Everyone but Sirzechs was in the study, as he had to answer a message from the other three Satan's but no one spoke a word. The head of the family Lord Zeoticus Gremory was sitting at his desk, Venelana Gremory his wife was standing at his side.

Sitting in one of his guest chairs was Rias, who looked confused as to what was going on. Her peerage was standing in a line behind her though Koneko was standing as close as she could to Sona without being noticed and reprimanded.

In the other guest chair was Sona, her queen Tsubaki standing on her right. Standing slightly behind her and less formally that Rias's peerage was the rest of Sona's peerage.

Off on the left side of the room looking out the window was Serafall, with only her queen Mukuro and knight Peko accompanying her. Standing against the same wall as the door was Grayfia, with Millicas standing in front of her, and on her left with a cloak disguising him for now was Issei.

Sirzechs finally walked into the room. He strolled straight up to his fathers desk and looked dead into his eyes.

"Father, enough is enough. We need to stop spoiling Rias!"

Rias jumped at his words but wisely held her tongue not wanting to speak up without knowing what she had to defend against.

"But she is the heiress an-"

"She not only nearly cost us our alliance with the Sitri clan, but she left her own kin to die!"

Those that weren't in the know had been shocked by the last part of his statement. Though Rias was more curious about how she almost cost them their friendship with Sona's family.

"Explain please." Venelana spoke up a harsh edge on her voice. While she knew Rias was too spoiled she needed context to her sons statement not wanting to falsely punish her daughter.

"Because of her actions my eldest son almost died!"

"You mean you finally found Takumi?!"

"Yes. According to what Ajuka had found in his exam, the devil that kidnapped Takumi from his cradle had somehow managed to manipulate his genetics so that his demonic powers would stay dormant. But he had received a sacred gear that awoke his magic. Takumi had been adopted by a family living in Kuoh, but Rias's actions and almost killed him!"

At this point Rias couldn't keep quiet.

"Who is Takumi?"

Zeoticus answered her question by explaining Takumi is Rias's oldest nephew, but when she was a year old, and Takumi only a few months old he was kidnapped.

"Okay, but I've never met a Takumi. So how did I nearly end our alliance with Sona's family and almost get him killed?"

"When he was adopted by a human couple they gave him a new name that's why you don't know that you know him. We only found him because Sona noticed a resemblance between him and Grayfia, and had asked for her help in teaching him to control his ice magic since it was fighting with his sacred gear for being his dominant power which caused his body to tear itself apart."

"I see. But that still doesn't answer my question. Besides I don't recall letting anyone I know die."

Behind her Matsuda and Motohama grumbled wondering if she remembered how she revived them and left Issei bleeding out. Most of Sona's peerage snorted at that while Rias whirled around in her seat to glare at them.

"Who is this Issei you mentioned?"

"Issei has been our friend since grade school. There's something wrong with his body and it basically causes his body to tear itself apart so he's pretty sickly. Because of that the doctors estimated him to die before turning 18."

"But don't let that fool you. He's fiercely protective of his friends and family… Hell he's taken a knife for me one time when someone tried to mug us while walking home, and got shot pushing Matsuda out of the way when a burglar broke in during one of our sleepovers. Since he's dying he cares more about keeping everyone else safe even if it means he'll die faster. And He'll do it with a smile on his face, not caring if he gets a word of thanks."

"He sounds like a fantastic person. I'd love to meet him."

"Ask Sona about that, she revived him." Rias responded to her mothers praise of the perverts friend. Said friend that was secretly hiding his identity from Rias until Sirzechs decided to reveal him.

"And that there is the rub Rias. By their admission you left their friend to die. You want to know how you nearly killed your nephew? His human parents named him Issei." Sirzechs spoke not even looking at his sister.

His words caused their mother to frown at her daughter. Lord Gremory, also glared at her before turning his attention to Sirzechs.

"But how did she almost ruin our connection with the Sitri clan?"

"Issei is my close friend and Fiancee. Rias knows both of these, yet she left him to die. It's true that I revived him, but what if I hadn't gotten there in time or my pieces weren't enough?" Sona said standing up and moving to Issei's side pulling the cloak away to reveal him to the group.

Luckily Tsubaki knew what her king was doing and had a camera ready to get pictures of Rias's reaction now that Issei had been revealed.

Sirzechs stepped back as well and placed a hand on each of his sons shoulders as Grayfia stood next to him behind their children.

Venelana was the first of the Gremorys to recover and demanded to know why her daughter seemed to hate her nephew. The first person to speak up however was Kiba.

"That cowardly bastard had the gale to pretend it was an accident after groping her."

"Were you there at the time Kiba? Cause I was, and let me tell you insulting my friend like that without proof has lowered my opinion of you considerably. Issei had just recovered from a coughing fit when he miss-stepped on the stairs and fell over Rias. Besides you could hardly call it a grope when his hands were on the ground to catch himself. He broke his right wrist with that fall and twisted the left."

Matsuda's explanation of the injuries had Grayfia immediately checking Issei's wrists to see if they properly healed. Sona however shook her head in exasperation as Issei tried to tell his mother they had already healed correctly.

"I did notice it took you half the time it should have to heal. I don't know how I didn't take it as another hint you weren't fully human."

"You were busy trying to prevent my death, or get my permission to resurrect me if I did die."

"Don't remind me. It took my two mutated rooks and your mutated king piece to bring you back."

At that everyone the only people not shocked were the two teens, Sirzechs and Grayfia. Sona was there so she already knew, and Ajuka had told Issei during his check up afterwords with Sirzechs and Grayfia accompanying him at that point.

"But the Devil King Devola theorized that people powerful enough to require more than two mutated pieces were unable to be revived after conducting several experiments." Zeoticus spoke up as he shook off his surprise.

"Pardon my language, but Fuck Devola. If it weren't for Sona and uncle Ajuka I would not be here."

Even though he had warned them before hand Sona still slapped his chest for cursing. Sirzechs chuckled at the two as he warned Issei to get used to it.

"But if Issei was born as a devil, how did he get a sacred gear?" Koneko questioned as she recalled the explanation for Issei's sickness.

Sirzechs and Serafall shared a look before the crimson haired devil responded.

"The system that controls the sacred gears is... broken I guess would be right the word. Things like this happen more often than you think. Or it could be that whatever genetic change the stray devil that kidnapped him did, masked his demonic presence enough for him to obtain his sacred gear."

Sona's queen Tsubaki did step forward and say the first option is possible as she was born as a devil with a sacred gear too. After that Grayfia looked down at Millicas since Koneko speaking had reminded her.

"I almost forgot. Issei has adopted Koneko as his little sister, Millicas. That means if you want she could be your big sister." The boy eagerly nodded as he raced towards the cat girl and pulled her over to stand beside him and Issei. After a moment he grasped her hand and proudly called her his big sister. Koneko pulled the boy into a hug, Issei ruffled Millicas's hair, Sirzechs and Grayfia just watched the three with a smile.

"And now to bring us back on topic. What are you going to do about Rias's punishment. Even though she didn't know it, she left her own nephew to die. She almost broke ties with the Sitri clan, and according to the reports Peko has given me from the times she checks in on Sona, Rias has been spreading vicious lies and rumors to manipulate the school." Serafall spoke for the first time since the meeting began.

Lord Gremory closed his eyes in thought over the subject, but his wife was having none of that. She pulled him up and out of his seat by his ear, and out the door to have a private discussion about what to do for a punishment. Having been on the receiving end of ear pulls from their loved ones before both Sirzechs and Issei winced in sympathy for the man. Though as they walked out Sirzechs told them Issei's decision about his name.

Rias and her peerage minus Koneko were quiet and sullen as they thought about all the possibilities for her punishment. Sona's peerage moved over to chat with Issei and Sona to pass the time. Serafall and her two peerage members just glared at Rias. After a moment Koneko and Millicas started playing patty cake to entertain themselves causing Grayfia to smile at the two.

 **With Lord Gremory and his wife**

"This is very serious honey. She needs to know that non of her actions were acceptable."

"That is true, but… It's hard to come up with something sufficient. The few ideas that came to mind before you pulled me away were too light or too heavy handed."

"What do you mean?"

"Well on the heavy handed side, I was thinking to restrict her from the human world but then that invites the arguments over her arranged marriage and despite how angry Sirzechs is at her I know he does not want her to marry Riser because of his arrogance."

"That's true, and not your fault. Riser was a good boy but his power went to his head after the agreement was made… But what of your lighter punishment ideas?"

"I thought about taking Kuoh away from her and having the council make it Issei's territory, but then I remembered it's not really hers since the council was only going to give it to Sona initially. I also thought about having her trade Issei little Koneko's rook piece since the two have bonded so well."

"Anything else?"

"Remover her as heiress and name either Issei or Millicas as heir but yet again this seems too light of a punishment."

"What about combining some of your ideas? Taking Kuoh away doesn't seem like much, but what if you did that in conjunction with trading Koneko to Issei, and instead of restricting her from the human world have her actions monitored to prevent her from repeating these actions?"

"What would I do without you my dear. That's a brilliant idea." Zeoticus said as he kissed his wife on the check. She chuckled at his words but had no witty thing to say in response. Their discussion now over the two returned to the study.

"We have decided how to handle Rias's punishment. First, I will be going to the council and having them remove Rias as joint controller of the territory that is Kuoh. Sona will be the sole devil in charge. Second, Rias will trade Koneko's rook piece to Issei because of how well they get along. Finally Rias is to be monitored at all times while within the human world to prevent her from being able to repeat these actions." Lord Gremory spoke. Rias looked outraged at his words but couldn't say anything as Sirzechs spoke up.

"Unless Koneko is willing to be traded I would not agree to your second punishment for her."

With that said every head in the room turned towards the white haired girl. She bowed her head in thought over the situation.

"Um… Since she'll be monitored will she still be asked to deal with stray devils?"

Sure Koneko would love to spend more time with Issei, and not have to worry about Rias's mood. But she wouldn't be able to live with herself if they got hurt because she wasn't there to help.

As if sensing her train of thought Lord Gremory shook his head no at her question, saying that the council was already discussing the dangers of small peerages being asked to take care of strays. Breathing out in relieve Koneko nodded at his question before declaring she would agree to be traded.

Deciding to get the trade out of the way Issei recalled how Ajuka had shown him to use his magic to "summon" or create the evil pieces he went through the process making a mutated rook piece appear in his hand. Rias did the same, sharing the idea of getting it over with quickly.

"Now then, since Rias hasn't gone through a trade yet she doesn't know this either. It's a good learning experience for both of you. Place the piece being traded in the center of the magic circle I'm about to draw then stand just off to the side." The two did as asked paying close attention to the older devils explanation.

"Now slowly start letting your aura flare and extend your hand towards the center. The chant I'm about to teach you to disrupt and change the link between the pieces and their current king so that they are now linked to you. Now repeat after me." Zeoticus spoke, guiding the two through the trade.

Once the trade was finished Rias decided she was tired and retired to her room with her peerage in tow. Serafall was satisfied with how things turned out so she left with her two peerage members. Sona's peerage excused themselves so as to give Issei the chance to properly meet his grandparents, though he wrapped his hand around Sona's so she had to stay with him but she didn't mind.

* * *

S.R: So what do you guys think. Loosing her territory, having to trade a peerage member, and being monitored to prevent repeat incidents is a pretty good punishment for her pettiness. Unless you are asking "What pettiness?" In that case stay tuned for next time as we delve more into why Rias has been so rude and spiteful towards Issei.


	9. Family time, Dressing Up, and The Church

S.R: So it's time to venture off into my mind for the rest of the story… Everyone prepared?

Issei: Snacks, check. Drinks, check. Computer, check. Background noise, check. Yep we're all set to delve into your creative mind for the story.

S.R: then let's go. CHARGE!

* * *

While Issei was getting to know his grandparents Rias was in her room. She lay on the floor just staring up at the ceiling, Akeno sitting nearby just watching her queen. Matsuda and Motohama didn't want to be near in case they were going to be yelled at and went to the library they had seen earlier wanting to stay someplace quiet. Kiba chose to stay outside the room standing in front of the door as if guarding the two inside. He was also questioning why he had such animosity earlier when he insulted Issei.

Matsuda was right, he wasn't there so why did he take his kings words about the event as fact? Why was he so rude towards the boy? After thinking on it Kiba came to the conclusion, that it was because of his devotion to his king. He blindly believed her and treated everything she said as fact. He resolved himself to apologize the next time he got the chance.

Inside the room Akeno just stared at her king. Rias was her best friend, so of course she went along with her attacks on Issei's character even though she knew better. So long as her friend was doing what she wanted Akeno would stand by her and that was all there was to say on the matter.

Rias on the other hand was thinking back to her interactions with Issei, questioning how many of them she could bring up as reasons to dislike the boy. Matsuda was right when he called Kiba out on the event he had spoken about. But what went unmentioned was the fact it freaked Rias out for a different reason than a boy being on top of her. The real reason she was unhappy with that event is that some of the blood he had coughed up during the attack he suffered before falling, had fallen onto her and it just creeped the girl out.

That was her true problem with the boy. Rias intensely dislikes and has a slight fear of getting blood on her but she didn't want anyone to know. She wanted everyone to think she was strong and independent, with no fear capable of doing anything asked of her. Yet every interaction she had with Issei before his death lead to her getting blood on her somewhere at some point. Weirdly as she thought back to that night and recalled stepping on him, she caught on to the fact that she had managed to evade getting blood on her shoe, and started wondering if she could have avoided it in some of the other instances.

The first time she had met the boy, he didn't noticed the dried and flaky blood on his hand when he shook hands with her as they had been introduced. Even though it was dry that time it still was still creepy to Rias. Another time she had walked right in front of him as an attack hit, getting some blood on her before he could cover his mouth. The next incident was the fall onto her. After that he actively tried to avoid her since she made a huge deal about it in her fear. But there was still one more time she could think of. Shortly after she started spreading the rumors about the boy, she had been walking up the stairs in the school. Somewhere above her Issei was hit by another student because of the rumors. That hit gave Issei a bloody mouth, and the next one knocked out a tooth. Said tooth was covered in blood and fell down the stairwell bouncing off Rias's hair onto her shoulder before rolling down her arm and leaving a trail of blood.

As she thought about these situations Rias realized that even if she mentioned them to the adults, nothing would change. The first three were accidents after all. The fourth time wasn't his fault in the slightest either. Rias knew that, but she let her fear get the better of her. After all she had tried to be his friend when they first met, well until she noticed the dried blood that had ended up on her hand.

Knowing there was nothing she could do to change the situation Rias sighed and resolved to take her punishment with dignity. Though she was saddened about having to trade Koneko, Rias would never force the girl or any of her peerage members to stay if they didn't want to. After all to Rias her peerage members were her precious friends, though that didn't stop her from being disappointed with Matsuda and Motohama speaking up even when she couldn't truly fault them for it as she would have done the same thing if she was in their shoes.

 **Downstairs with Issei**

Issei was enjoying his time with his grandparents, they were greatly entertaining. But what he enjoyed more was holding Sona close as he spent his time with his family. Eventually though Sirzechs and Zeoticus pulled him away from his Fiancee in the name of wanting to give the girls a chance for girl talk.

Really it was just an excuse for both of them to tease Issei about being whipped for his soon to be wife, and to give him advice for handling the married life. They also wanted to get away and speak a bit more freely as the girls don't particularly like swearing, slang, or just rough language and would hit them for the coarse language especially in front of little Millicas who rather than staying with the adults and his older brother after they left the girls, wondered off to play.

"The first shitty thing you need to know about married life is simple my grandson. Women want an obedient husband. Always respond to your wife with 'yes dear' or something similar."

"I don't think he has to worry about that. Sona's already got him trained." Sirzechs taunted his son with a slight grin, one that was mirrored by his own father.

"Oh, and mama doesn't have you by the balls?" Issei teased back making Zeoticus laugh, before Sirzechs turned to him mimicking a whip sound as he flicked his wrist.

"Papa's right, you don't have room to laugh considering grandma pulled you out of the room by your damn ear."

"Cheeky brats aren't you?"

After a moment the three of them burst into laughter walking off to Zeoticus's "man cave". Also refereed to as his hidden room where he can get away from his wife and be as rough as he wants or just hang out with his friends in a setting that was more comfortable than his study. Inside the room was a fully stocked bar, a pool table, dart boards, and a huge home entertainment system.

"Here's an idea. Let's celebrate your engagement by giving you your first taste of booze."

"I'll second that idea, but only if we can hide here till there is no way for the women to find out." Sirzechs winced as he thought of what his wife would do to him for letting their underage son drink.

"How about we have some of the stuff I got on my last business trip to Scotland?"

"Scotch whisky sounds good."

"Then you'll like this one. It's a brand of single malt whisky called Bruichladdich." Zeoticus said as he found the teal/turquoise colored bottle he was thinking of and poured the three of them a glass. Replacing the corked cap on the bottle, he grabbed his glass and raised it in front of him.

"To Issei's engagement!"

Sirzechs and Issei raised their glasses in echo, though Issei hesitated until the older men goaded him into it. Issei coughed, not used the burn that comes from alcohol. Sirzechs and Zeoticus however smiled, both enjoying the aggressive flavor. Reaching past his father Sirzechs grasped the bottle and pulled it to him, studying it so he could find it later.

As the devil read the label on the bottle he was surprised to find that it was 50% alcohol by volume, making him wonder if it was a good idea for his sons first drink to be so heavy in alcohol content.

 **With Sona**

The girls focused on Sona and Koneko, grilling the two for stories about Issei wanting to know about his life that they missed. They did their best to tell Grayfia and Venelana but about halfway through their talk Sona froze.

"Why do I feel like they are doing something stupid?" She asked referring to the men. The two older women just smiled, as Venelana told the girl that men are always doing something stupid.

"Little Millicas probably went to go play, so those three are probably in Zeoticus's 'man cave'."

Shrugging in response to the older devils words, Sona went back to sharing stories about Issei, making Grayfia smile as she thought to herself. ' _My boy is so lucky to have a girl like her fall in love with him._ '

After a while the men returned because it was time to leave. Issei and Sona had to get back to the human world for dinner with his human parents, their way of celebrating Issei's engagement. Unfortnately Koneko being a Nekomata had better senses than even the devils. She caught on to the lingering alcohol scent, though she didn't know what it was. However she had found the scent before and used that memory to help clarify her question.

"There's a funny smell on you… It reminds of someone I saw stumbling around the city one day. What is it?" Koneko asked as she got up close to the trio, especially Issei. Venelana and Grayfia's eyes hardened at Koneko's words, both woman having an idea of what happened. Neither one were very happy that they got Issei involved in the action. They shared a quick look before marching up to their husbands and pulling their ears.

Issei winced in sympathy, while Koneko tilted her head in confusion. He told her he'd explain later, which made Sona's eyes narrow as she wondered if she needed to pull on his ear as well. Luckily for him the situation ended quickly with the two older women just telling him not to listen to the older male devils in situations like that again. He nodded rapidly, as he didn't think he was ready to start drinking, nor did he like the one drink he had.

With that done, Sona gathered her peerage and the teens left the underworld. Sona's peerage proceeded to drag her away saying they wanted to help her get ready for the engagement dinner. Though it was really just an excuse for them to play dress up and try to embarrass their king. Issei and Koneko just went home, since they didn't know about the supernatural world the two teens had to create a cover story for why Koneko was going to be living with them full time now that she wasn't part of Rias's peerage.

In the end they decided that their cover story was because of how close the two were Sirzechs and Grayfia also unofficially adopted her, and asked if she'd help keep an eye on Issei. Emiko, his adoptive mother was thrilled and rushed the cat girl off to buy a more dressy outfit for dinner. Apparently after Serafall had left the Gremory household earlier she worked it out and changed the plans. Originally Sona and Issei were going to have two separate engagement dinners, one with his adoptive parents only and then a more formal one with his real parents and Sona's parents. But now thanks to Serafall's intervention both groups would be gathering so it was going to be a more fancy dinner.

Issei's outfit for the dinner was dressy but still rather casual as he chose to forgo a blazer. He had nice black leather shoes, black slacks, and a turquoise colored button up and black vest this time with a red tie. It was rather similar to his date outfit, but there were key differences. When he went on his movie and dinner date with Sona he left a few of the top buttons of the shirt undone and had his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Also his vest for the date was left open. This time around he had the vest buttoned up and only the very top button of the shirt undone though that was hidden by his tie. He rolled his sleeves up a little differently this time, making a cuff so as to appear a little more well kept. He sighed as he put his watch on, a little sad that his parents had decided not to let Millicas join them for the dinner party, but figured he'd find a way to make it up to his little brother.

Both of his fathers followed his lead wearing similar outfits, though instead of a turquoise shirt they both when with black for Iseki, and red for Sirzechs. Emiko had a black dress that clung tightly to her legs, but had a cut on the side running up to her mid thigh to allow for movement. Grayfia had gone with a strapless red gown that had clung to her figure though her skirt flared out ending just above her ankles matching her husbands chosen color.

For Koneko it was hard to find something fancy and elegant due to her short stature so she ended up having to settle with a shorter skirt than she would have liked. She had a white dress, the top half covered in sparkles from the neckline down to the waist. The dress had short sleeves that barely went past her shoulders, but ended in a ruffles. The dresses skirt stopping just above her knees while standing, also having ruffles.

 **With Sona**

Luckily Sona had known about Issei's outfit and had been able to guide her peerage into dressing her to match. Sona was put into a turquoise gown, it's ruffled skirt reaching about half way down her shins with the innermost layer. The top half of the gown was form fitting with a black lace corset that was patterned with waves. Though it was slightly uncomfortable for the girl as it pushed her breasts up and exposed them a bit more than she was used to. At that point Sona and her peerage were interrupted. Her older sister Serafall had sent her bishop Akane to help out, shooing everyone away from Sona while she did up her hair.

Once the older devil finish Sona had her hair pulled up and back into an elegant side bun. Thinking she was done being fussed over by the older woman Sona went to stand up only to be pushed back down into her seat.

"We need to get a few pieces of jewelry on you besides that ring. Your upper body is still somewhat bare with how open the top half of this dress gown is."

Sona groaned. It's not that she hated jewelry or didn't have any, no. She groaned because she felt like wearing necklaces would draw more attention towards her chest, which she was very self conscious about. Akane, having listened in a few times when Sona confided to Serafall how unsatisfied she was with her chest size had to stifle a chuckle at the girl.

"I'm thinking something simple, maybe silver?" She asked Sona as she sorted through the younger girls jewelry box. Sona just nodded, hoping she had something that would please the older woman but not be too eye catching. Akane found a simple silver chained necklace with a red heart shaped crystal encased in fancy silver shell that's border was patterned to look like a dragon wrapping it's wings around the stone. It was simple yet elegant, so it fit the situation perfectly. Sona was glad the chain wasn't terribly long as once she had it on, it didn't hang low enough to draw the eye directly towards her open chest, being closer to her collar bones than her forcefully lifted chest.

On Sona's end her mother and sister decided to wear matching white dresses, that were simple but still elegant. The pencil dresses they had chosen were slitted up the right side partially showing off their legs. Her father who had been busy making business deals all day decided to just wear his suit that he already had on, though due to being a little warm left the blazer coat at home, leaving him with the white shirt, deep blue tie, and gray vest and slacks he'd been wearing.

When the two families finally met up, all of the adults even Sona's parents who rarely showed emotion had to smile at the two teens. Neither one had managed to compliment the other yet, both wide eyed as they admired the other. Eventually one of the men, no one was sure which one coughed behind his hand, breaking the spell on the two as they flooded each other with compliments. After that the night went by without an incident.

 **The next day**

Issei and Sona had decided to take a stroll around town and enjoy the nice weather. As they walked by the park they found a lost girl. The girl was dressed as a nun, and despite knowing it was a bad idea they escorted her to the church she was assigned to. The teens came to learn the girl was around their age, and her name was Asia. Luckily she was distracted upon reaching the church and didn't invite the two in. Neither one of them wanted to try to make up a lie to keep them out of the church since even standing at the end of the pathway to the front door was causing the two headaches.

Sadly Issei noticed the fallen-angel that had killed him and his perverted friends was present at the church, catching a glimpse of her through one of the windows.

"I don't know why but I have a bad feeling about leaving Asia at the church."

"Considering a fallen-angel is involved I have a similar feeling. But there isn't much we can do about it without risking a war."

"Not to mention that thanks to the devil council our peerages are only allowed to fight against other factions or stray devils in self defense only, unless we have 6 or more members and have proven capable."

"Honestly I don't mind that, it makes governing the territory easier. Even though I have more paperwork to fill out now that I have to request for someone to deal with the strays when they pop up."

"I'm sorry that Rias lost joint control with you. Having two High class devils must have split the paperwork enough to be bearable."

"I don't mind. I'd rather have to do all of the paperwork than have you dead or dying on me."

"I won't leave you."

"I know."

The two continued chatting, unaware of the hidden person following them.

* * *

S.R: Bruichladdich is an actual Scotish Whisky in case you were wondering. I had to go off of my dad's description on the flavor as I've never tried it myself (I want to though). I didn't say much on the flavor because I don't want someone who has tried to to read and call me out on it, which is why I had more details about the bottle than the drink itself. Also this was going to be out much sooner, but I got sidetracked by my own wifey.

S.R: ALSO I personally do not believe the line Zeoticus said to Issei about what woman want from their husband, I just used that line because I remember snorting at my dad when he said it to me after I proposed to my wife.


	10. Preparing For Battle

S.R: Alight kids, it's time for the another field trip into my mind.

Issei: Yay?

S.R: Be sure to take notes so you can review later. Especially since I'm finally naming the last person currently part of Sona's peerage and what piece they are.

Issei: Nah, I'll just bring my phone with me and take pictures for reference.

S.R: I guess that works. Are you ready? Let's go!

* * *

Eventually the two teens drifted towards the school, Sona calling her peerage together for an update on how many contracts they'd completed. Before they could speak though, a person stepped out from the shadows putting everyone on edge.

The person was a fallen-angel with dark black hair and light crystalline blue eyes. He wings were folded in but still visible behind her. She wore a pair of black jeans, the hems ragged and torn. Her shirt was a simple red t-shirt with a black heart in the center with a pair of horns, and a trident pronged tail that twisted and pointed downward.

"Sorry if I've scared you, but I have a message to deliver to Sona Sitri, the devil in charge of this territory. I have permission from the Four Satan's to be here if it helps."

"What is your message then?"

"Well first off as you've already noticed I am a fallen-angel. My name is Zoephiel. Our leader lord Azazel has intentions of making peace with the devils, however the process has been delayed as he is currently trying to quell the dissent in the more violent fallen-angels. Because of how busy he is, he asked me to pass on some information about fallen-angels here in Kuoh and assist if needed."

"What do you mean assist if needed?"

"Some of the more violent members have started to rebel and go rouge. That includes a group of four fallen-angels that are now in Kuoh. Well more like three of them are rouge, the fourth is being blackmailed into going along with them."

"In other words he wants us to take care of the rouges for him. I've heard a lot about Azazel, but none of it leads me to believe him lazy enough to ask others to handle his problems."

"Lord Azazel, and lord Baraquiel are both currently hunting for Kokabiel as he is the strongest of the rouge fallen-angels and the most dangerous."

"I see… You say you have permission from the Satan's too which means they are willing to let us deal with it rather than sending in a fighting force even though the council has declared peerages smaller than 6 members not counting the king are no longer allowed to engage in combat with other factions or strays."

"That is true, but the council cannot argue against it when the Satan's themselves issue the order. Which is why I'm here. Serafall wants me to train your peerage." A magic circle appeared as Sona's sister Serafall's bishop Akane appeared and spoke startling everyone. Sona nodded her thanks to the older woman who verified the fallen's claim. Taking the news in stride she continued on with the conversation.

"What information can you give us about the four fallen-angels here in my territory?"

"They have been consolidating power gathering stray exorcists, probably planning to attack you or Rias Gremory as killing you two would make both Lucifer and Leviathan want war. I've also come to learn that they have manipulated events so that a young nun by the name of Asia Argento would be sent to this town so they could steal her sacred gear."

"I think she was meaning their names and abilities, not their plan. Attacking us was almost a given."

"Attacking us? Based on that I can assume you are Lucifer's lost son that has recently been found?"

"I'd ask how you know, but considering Azazel has already started the talks with the Satan's I have my guesses."

"Ah… Anyway on the Four rouge fallen-angels here in Kuoh. They are named Raynare, Dohnaseek, Mittelt, and Kalawarner. Kalawarner being the one that has been blackmailed into helping them, having her most treasured possession taken by Dohnaseek. They all have the ability to make light-spears, but are fairly inexperienced in fighting though."

"How much time do you estimate we have before they are ready?"

"Considering I've kept an eye on them all day, I know there are a few things they need to gather before starting the ritual to steal the nun Asia Argento's Sacred Gear. I do not know which Gear it is but I know it has healing capabilities. Anyway depending on how easily they find the materials they still need we have anywhere from a week, to three weeks. If it helps I can offer a bit of assistance in your training."

"I think we'd be better off keeping an eye on them," opening one of her desk drawers Sona pulled out a piece of paper with a magic circle drawn on it and handed it to Zoephiel as she continued speaking "This is a contract paper, you can use it to call us when they make their move."

Zoephiel nodded and bowed politely before leaving to continue watching her brethren. At that point Peko spoke again.

"Issei, officially speaking you do not have to join us for this training as you are but aren't a peerage member due to your circumstances. But Lord Lucifer has asked that if you do not want me to train you, you call him as he wishes for your mother to help you out."

"Okay… I think I want mama's help since we have the same magic, but do you know anyone that could help me train physically?"

"That is a suitable arrangement. But if you want to train for melee combat I need to know what your Sacred Gear is so that I can find a suitable teacher."

"Um… I'd rather everyone that needs to know be here first before I reveal it. Can we get Papa and everyone else here right now?"

"I shall go request their presence for you." Akane said leaning back into the shadows that surrounded her.

"Issei are you sure you want my peerage to know about this?"

"Sona you used two rooks to revive me, I'm part of your peerage too. That means they are my allies. Besides you and aunt Grizelda are the only two that know and I'm tired of having to hide it honestly."

Akane having mentioned Issei wanted to reveal his sacred gear quickly gathered the Four Satan's as they in a meeting, all leading the more interested members of their peerages to human world to see Issei's Sacred Gear... She was able to return with them in tow before Sona could answer his declaration.

Once the older devils appeared Issei told them about how Grizelda had helped him discover and unlock his Sacred Gear, making the Four Satan's eyes widen as they knew the name. Grizelda Quarta as one of the top 5 exorcists currently living, had known Issei as a child yet didn't try to bring him and his Sacred Gear to Heaven's side. They didn't know to be worried over the possibility of her returning to take him, or glad that she hadn't tried to force him into joining Heaven.

"Anyway, rather than tell you what my Gear is I'll show you. Let's do this Ddraig. **Boosted Gear**!" As Issei shouted the last bit, a red gauntlet appeared on his arm. It was made of scales and patterned to look like a dragons clawed hand, the spikes representing talons extending out a fair bit. But right in the center of the back of his hand there was a shining green gem.

" **Finally stepping up your training eh partner?** " Ddraig questioned with a yawn since Issei activating the Sacred Gear woke him up.

"Wait what does he mean stepping up?"

" **Occasionally** **when we talk while he sleeps we do a bit of light training. After all I need to make sure my host can defend himself. It would suck if someone other than my rivals host were the one to defeat him.** "

"Then how was he killed, and needing to be revived?"

" **I was asleep and he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings. He would not have been defeated so easily otherwise.** **After all even when his body was tearing itself apart he was still strong enough to handl** **e** **twenty minutes** **worth of boosts before hitting his limit. I'd say he's easily already one of the five strongest hosts I've ever had.** **Now that he has a more suitable body he should become much stronger,** **so he has the potential to become the strongest host I've had.** "

Ddraig spoke making Sirzechs smile at how strong his son had the potential to become. Based off the power he felt the first time he saw the boy as a teenager Sirzechs knew that by age 21 Issei would be in the upper tier of the Ultimate class devils. But after hearing Ddraig, Sirzechs had a feeling his son would become at least as strong as himself if not stronger.

" **Speaking of your body, I was awake and listening in when you talked with the devil known as Ajuka** **about you still needing to recover from the 16 years of strain on your organs** **. Part of the reason I've been sleeping more since your revival is that I've shunted my powers into your body to speed up the recover** **y. As of tomorrow morning around 8 you will be completely recovered."**

"Then I'd like to start training tomorrow. I've got to grow strong enough to protect Sona… But I can't focus on just one power and leave the other behind. Mama would you help me with my magic?"

Grayfia noting how wise her son sounded as he spoke, was proud of how he was growing up. She was also extremely happy that he wanted her to teach him. She was so overwhelmed by her feelings that she couldn't even speak, just nodding in acceptance at her son. Though Sirzechs stepped in assigning his own rook Sutr Second as Issei's mentor for his physical training then adding Koneko to the mix.

"Grayfia, Sutr I want you two to stay in Kuoh while training him. It wouldn't be right to bring him to the underworld and make Iseki and Emiko worry about him after all. Also, I know Sona's pawn Shin would benefit greatly so if he wants, Shin can join Issei and Koneko in learning from Sutr."

"That is true. I'd need to ask him though. Honestly I really only ask him to get involved in emergencies, and leave him to do his own thing most of the time."

"I can understand allowing freedom, but its rare that he shows up even when you call your whole peerage together."

"That's because his birth parents are dead and as the oldest he has to take care of his five younger siblings. I found him dying as he protected them from a burglar and revived him because it wouldn't have been right to let five children be left alone without an older family member to take care of them. I've helped him with what I could, but he doesn't want to accept help without asking for it so I have given him the order that he can ignore group summons from me to do what he needs to for his siblings. If I need him for something I call him separately."

"Would you mind if I talked with him? I want to help as well."

Sona nodded at the crimson haired devils words pulling out her cellphone to call her pawn, since it was safer for him to have to answer his phone than it was for him to use a magic circle to talk. Thankfully his boss was a good man who was willing to let the man take a break to deal with anything that came up and Shin was able to come meet with the Lucifer.

Shin was older than the rest of Sona's peerage already being in his early twenties. The easiest way to describe his appearance is tired and rugged. His black hair was rather shaggy his bangs were brushed up out of his eyes. He had a bit of stubble on his chin making it look like he was trying to grow a goatee. His pale yellow eyes had bags under them adding to his worn out appearance. However he was also fairly tall standing at 6'1. Once he arrived Sirzechs pulled him into a separate room to talk.

"Things are about to get crazy… Unfortnately the devils council has made it harder to prepare for future problems. Other, weaker peerages where struggling to deal with stray devils so now there are requirements for peerages to meet before allowing them to do so. The issue with that is while you now have to be at a certain level training wise it won't be enough. The problems ahead will require experience."

"Luckily they cannot oppose the Four Satan's and rescind our orders. The future leaders of the devils need to grow tougher faster. Sona is one of them, and she will need her entire peerage ready to go and as capable as possible… I know you have to look out for your family, but I'm asking you to step up with the rest of your peerage mates. I am willing to do whatever I can to help you and your family. All I ask is that you help Sona get through this."

"I owe her my life. She gave me a second chance to provide for my siblings. So if I need to do anything for her I will. If you say I need to get stronger then tell me what to do."

"Firstly, have you already met Issei?"

"Yeah, he's a good kid. I heard he and Sona finally got together. I'm happy for them."

"That makes things easier. He's my son but he was kidnapped from his cradle when he was few months old… Anyway I own the house next to the one he lives in with his adoptive parents. I want to give it to you and your siblings. I'm sure being close to Iseki and Emiko will help lighten your burden in caring for them, those two love to help."

"Are you sure? I mean I can work to pay you back as well."

"It's a gift. Besides it'll lighten your workload, not just in keeping an eye on you little siblings but in taking care of bills."

"Thank you… Now you say we'll need experience and training to survive future issues. Back before my parents died I studied a bit of kendo. Based on that, what do you think I should do to improve."

"Well Issei is going to be strength training and probably learning mixed martial arts from my rook Sutr. For now, I'd recommend training with him. Also I'd get reacquainted with your kendo skills. If you want I can see about getting you a sword?"

"That would be appreciated, but it doesn't need to be anything special. When Sona revived me we learned I have a Sacred Gear. It's called **Aria of Elements**. There are a few aria's that I know and by signing one I can temporarily control the element linked to that song. I've used it sometimes when reheating food or cooling the house down."

Sirzechs nodded and the two walked back to the student councils office where everyone else was waiting. Shin strode forward and kneeled before his king. He told her to call upon him more often from now on, and that he was looking forward to training with Issei. Sona nodded at his words and dismissed him to take care of his siblings.

"You know I can understand training us since we are going to deal with this situation as a way for us to grow stronger, but shouldn't Rias and her peerage be training too?" Issei spoke, drawing a sigh from Sirzechs.

"They are training, but since they were the ones to handle most of the stray devils before the council created this new rule only her two pawns need a teacher. So she is teaching them the ropes herself. After that depending on how they want to fight they'll either train in magic with Akeno, or train for melee combat with Kiba. While she's teaching them Kiba and Akeno will be doing individual training. After they've learned what they can from her Rias is going to train on her own."

"I guess that makes sense. But without help will they improve enough in time?"

"They will be back up for you in dealing with the fallen-angels, but even after the incident is over Rias will be pushing them to train for personal reasons so I wouldn't worry about them."

Once everything had been cleared up for the teens, and arrangements were made for the three older devils to stay in town the meeting ended.

Over the next two and a half weeks everyone rapidly improved. It was scary trying to track their progress, especially as Sona improved her water magic to the level where when she focused enough she could shift small amounts of water to ice, dubbing the technique **Ice Bullet**. She also gained a greater level of control over her eye abilities being able to control them about 75% of the time now.

Her bishops Momo and Reya, made a lot of progress in learning new spells though neither one had a specialty with any element like Sona. Momo however did discover a talent for barriers and defensive magic. Reya on the other hand was more offense oriented with her learning, not wanting to be unable to fight back.

Sona's queen Tsubaki made a lot of progress in mastering her Sacred Gear **Mirror Alice**. Originally she could only use it to reflect attacks back at enemies with twice the power once every thirty seconds. Within the week and a half they'd been training she dropped that time down to once every five seconds, and when focusing she could create up to 3 mirrors to deflect attacks. She also figured out how to reflect the attacks wherever she wanted instead of right back at the initial enemy. All in all the four women had progressed splendidly.

As for the two men of the group they had much harsher training as Sutr had trouble holding back. With it helped them improve even faster, they had made a pattern of two days training with Sutr then one day off so as to recover.

Shin had bulked up during the training his muscles starting to show more prevalent than before. Sutr praised his growth saying that if he continued to work hard, thanks to his Sacred Gear he could earn the title of "Elemental Blade". He also opened up to Issei and the others in the peerage quickly cementing himself as an older brother to the group.

It helped that after moving in next door to Issei, his siblings were happier than ever. They had a new 'older brother' in Issei and 'older sister' in Koneko even though she was around their height, to hang out with and be spoiled by on top of Issei's human parents essentially claiming them as grandchildren.

Koneko having been part of Rias's peerage before did have some training and skill but her abilities were unrefined and wild. So her training was focused on the basics, rebuilding her fighting style from the ground up, and increasing her already high strength and durability.

Issei on the other hand on the days off from training with Sutr was still training with his birth mother, enjoying the time he could spend with her. He already had a solid grasp on his magic, so learning from her was more of a pushing the boundaries of what he could and couldn't do with his ice. Grayfia did teach him a few minor spells though not wanting him to rely on just his ice.

In the end Issei had developed his own style using a mix of karate, kickboxing, and judo. While he still had a long way to go before he could be considered an expert in even one of the fighting styles he learned Issei was confident that he had at least gotten a good start.

On the last day before Zoephiel's three week estimate the older devils returned to the underworld, instructing their students to train on their own and get some battle experience before asking for more teaching. The group had meet back up in the student council office, Zoephiel outlining what she had learned from watching the church. Zoephiel also mentioned she had warned Kalawarner about the attack. They planned for Kalawarner to "confront" Zoephiel after the others were distracted by their own fights they would go find Kalawarner's most treasured item before returning to help clean up the stray exorcists.

Issei and Koneko would take on Raynare as he had a score to settle with the girl. Sona was confident she could take on Dohnaseek the strongest of the three rouges. She left Tsubaki to handle Mittelt, while Momo, Reya, and Shin would deal with the stray exorcists that the fallen-angels had gathered.

* * *

S.R: I ended it here for a specific reason class. Can anyone who was paying attention tell me why? **looks around for Issei** Issei? where'd you go? Dammit he wondered off while we toured my mind. Hopefully I can find him soon.

Issei: I'm right here. What'd I miss.

S.R: You missed me stopping the tour for now?

Issei: Before the fighting or after?

S.R: You aren't supposed to know the rest of the story! It's more fun when you react to it with the viewers. Speaking of, I really should thank you all for the love. While this story hasn't gotten as many views as my other works It's growing quickly. It really does help when I get feedback from you all.


	11. New Peerage Members and A Remodeled Home

S.R: Okay now remember we aren't here to map out my mind. That would take forever, and probably lead places you don't want to go. We are only here to write down what we learn for this story.

Issei: Got it boss!

S.R: Good. Now let's get going.

* * *

The devils and their companion made their way to the abandoned church the fallen-angels were using as a base. Sneaking in quietly they waited for the disruption Sona's three peerage members were causing to pull as many as possible away from where they were supposed to be.

Zoephiel found Kalawarner and the two charged each other putting on a show for the other fallen-angel in the room. Not long into the battle they faked having the two were able to break off, dealing with a few exorcists that were too close the two split off from the main group. Unfortnately Dohnaseek, the one blackmailing Kalawarner saw through their ruse, toying with his own opponent while the two fought.

Once they were gone, Dohnaseek created a bright light to distract Sona. Being temporarily blinded Sona didn't see the man take off after her fallen-angel allies. Shrugging his disappearance off, as they could search for him after the group had been defeated she joined her peerage members in dealing with the stray exorcist.

"Why does it seem like the only thing they have going for them is numbers?"

"Well we were trained by some of the best."

"They're trusting us to step up and eventually reach their level. Of course small fries like this won't matter much."

"If you've got time to talk, you've got time to be a lot more of these guys down" Sona scolded the three as she generated a small wave of water to sweep through the room knocking almost all of the enemies to the ground.

"Alright. Let's do this!" Taking advantage of the water Sona had called to the battlefield Shin sang the aria connected to lighting, and using the water to amplify it's shock began wreaking havoc against their enemies. Sighing Sona secretly thought the same thing as her peerage about their weak opponents.

Meanwhile Sona's queen Tsubaki was having a frustrating time. Mittelt having followed in Azazel's footsteps as a researcher of Sacred Gears was a tough opponent to pin down. Even using **Mirror Alice** to reflect multiple attacks in a cage like pattern around opponent and her own magic spells wasn't enough to pin down the fallen-angel. It was a game of cat and mouse, except the mouse was far faster and less scared of the cat.

Mittelt taunted Tsubaki the entire time as she twisted and flipped around the attacks being sent at her. Luckily for Tsubaki she was fast enough to prevent Raynare from getting close enough to use her light-spears as melee weapons. The battle was one of attrition and they both knew it. Either Tsubaki would run out of magic and Mittelt would be able to get in close and defeat her with melee, or Mittelt's stamina would fail her and she'd be killed by magic and or her own reflected attacks. Or at least their battle would have been if Issei and Koneko hadn't thrown Raynare into Mittelt's side, giving Tsubaki a clear shot to hit both of them with a reflected light-spear.

While Tsubaki struggled to hit her opponent Issei and Koneko dominated Raynare, both batting the girl around like she was a tennis ball between the two. Even though She had learned quickly the two were extreme powerhouse hitters it did nothing to save her, as they worked in unision, covering each others backs. If she went to attack one the other would block and hold her in place for the other to land a hit. If she dodged a punch or a kick from one the other was already there ready to attack forcing her to spend a good chunk of the time they spent fighting running from the two.

Of course she was pissed at herself for killing Issei once she saw he had the **Boosted Gear** , as he had the ability to focus what was being boosted, letting it be a normal boost, giving each of his stats a small jump or focusing it all into attack power or speed gaining a massive difference compared to normal. She pleaded with him to spare her, but Issei felt someone that would attack innocent people during an attempt for revenge was not worth letting live. Showcasing just how strong he had become with only three weeks of training, the boy was able to backhand Raynare's magic spells away, and even for a limited time hold back her light spears before being burned.

Because of his confidence in their strength Issei just boosted his speed, making it nearly impossible for Raynare to do anything against him, catching her unaware as he pinned her in place for Koneko to wail on. After an intense struggle she was able to free herself by using her wings to shrug Issei off. By this point she was panting heavily. Just looking at her appearance Issei and Koneko were sure they'd crushed several of the girls ribs, and at the very least broken several other bones. What they didn't know, but Raynare certainly felt was that one of the broken bones was a rib that had actually been snapped in half. Not only that but it had punctured her right lung, causing her to have trouble breathing. Naturally it was the pause she took attempting to breath which lead to her being thrown headfirst against Mittelt and getting cause up in the reflected light-spear.

Granted the light-spear wasn't going to fatally injure either one, but it would do enough damage to make Raynare even weaker. It also gave Tsubaki and edge she would gladly take advantage of.

Once the two fallen-angels had untangled themselves from each other the fighting resumed as Issei thrust his fist into Raynare's stomach the force launching her into a wall causing it to crack and spiderweb out around the girl, while Tsubaki weaved a net of magical spells around Mittelt slowly whittling her down. Eventually she caught the fallen-angel of guard with a spell piercing through the girls chest with a blast of wind Completely shredding one of her lungs and nicking her heart.

As Mittelt fell, Issei dealt the final blow to Raynare, driving his gauntlet through her stomach and out her back. By that point Raynare had long been unconscious, but it didn't matter to Issei, who was feeling justified in making sure she couldn't hurt anyone else. Heaving a sigh at the battle being over Issei and Koneko joined Tsubaki in walking towards Sona's waiting group.

The battles lasted around half an hour, but they were all an overwhelming success in their opinions as they searched for Dohnaseek. Eventually they found the man. He had defeated Kalawarner and Zoephiel both being on the ground behind him as he stood next to a crucifix. Unfortnately he had managed to start the ritual to remove Asia's Sacred Gear.

He applauded their attempt, saying it would be amusing to fight them after he gained the Sacred Gear that Asia held mentioning that he would be able to heal from any injury. Unfortnately the group had to let him finish the ritual as he had the power to create a rather impressive barrier that had to be dealt with. Normally Issei would have just powered through it but the way Dohnaseek had constructed his barrier, it would collapse the building on top of them if any one of them attempted to just shattered it with pure physical might.

As the ritual finished a pair of silver rings with a green glow surrounding them appeared from Asia's chest. Slipping one on each hand the Fallen angel turned around, laughing manically.

"You fools should have fled when you had the chance. Now with the **Twilight Healing** I am unkillable. With just a thought I can heal myself from any injury."

Lunging forward Dohnaseek generated a huge light-spear in each of his hands aiming to pierce right through Issei. But to his shock, both Zoephiel and Kalawarner had recovered from being knocked out. The two had jumped right in front of him letting his spear tear through themselves as they each grabbed the hand in front of them. Both of them knew they would die but they couldn't let Dohnaseek win. Pulling the man closer to the two of them, they smiled towards Issei.

"We'll hold him still. Take him down. Hard." Even though they were struggling to stand each of the girls held Dohnaseek with iron grips. Nodding at their words Issei used the **Boosted Gear** to increase the power behind the ice spell he was casting. Inside the magic circle for his spell a dragon made of solid ice began forming. Once it was fully formed it let out a tremendous roar before charging at Dohnaseek, biting into the man and tearing him apart. As he fell the girls holding him let go and collapsed on top of themselves. Even with their keen eyes the devils present couldn't detect a trace of breathing from the two.

Unnoticed to everyone during the attack Zoephiel and Kalawarner had managed to position Dohnaseek's hands so that the rings of **Twilight Healing** fell off before he was defeated. After Issei was sure that the man wouldn't be a problem any longer he released his command of the ice dragon he created, letting it collapse and shatter. Marching forward to the two fallen-angels he summoned the box that held his evil pieces. As he kneeled down he saw **Twilight Healing** on the floor beside the two, and noticed Kalawarner's sword.

Placing a one of his two knights on Kalawarner's chest and one bishop on Zoephiel's chest he was glad to see the glow that he had been told signified that the person could be revived with the piece from both of them. Starting with Kalawarner Issei began the chant.

"I command thee Kalawarner, on my name Issei Takumi Hyoudou Gremory, become my servant and once more return thy soul to this land and become a devil."

Issei was even more satisfied to see the piece sink into the girls chest as color started to return to her face and she started breathing again. Quickly turning to Zoephiel Issei repeated his chant replacing Kalawarner's name with Zoephiel's. Similarly to Kalawarner color returned to the girls face as her chest started to rise and fall to the rhythm of her breath once more.

Sighing in relief Issei pocketed **Twilight Healing** intending to ask what to do with it later, just as a magic circle appeared in the room. Stepping out of the magic circle was Sirzechs. Before he could congratulate the group Issei drew his attention to the two newly reincarnated devils.

"Well now that you've started to build your peerage up I plan to tell your adoptive parents that my 'bodyguards' insisted you get a few for when you take over my company. Which is true, I have several companies in the human world that I am the CEO of and will be passing on to you once you're old enough. But that's besides the point. If they accept it I was going to offer to rebuild your house making it more suitable for a peerage."

"That is fine I guess. But what about while that's going on?"

"Well given how badly damaged they look I'd say we can pull it off before they wake up in a couple days. But of course It'll require magic."

"Maybe we can convince them to take a vacation for around the time it would take to do it manually. I wonder if they'd be okay with that if I said you could stay with me" Sona spoke up trying to help create a cover story to hide the supernatural from his human parents.

"I was meaning where they would stay while unconscious."

"Oh. Well if you'd like I can have on of the Gremory maids stay with them in a vacation home I have on the edge of town?"

"That would work… Also I picked this up but don't know what to do with it." Issei spoke revealing the rings of **Twilight Healing** to his father. After hearing what they were the man told his son to keep them and see if his new bishop could use the Sacred Gear. Nodding at the advice Issei slipped them back into his pocket.

Now that the big questions had been dealt with Issei decided to bury Asia's body. With Shin and Sirzechs help Issei got her body down and carried her to the cemetery just down the road from the church. Walking to the very back of the lot which was lined with trees, Issei found a dead tree with a couple limbs that had fallen. With a little bit of magic he fashioned a grave marker for the girl. Quietly and solemnly Issei started to dig a hole as Shin held Asia's body while the girls watched on. After they had deemed the grave sufficiently deep Issei and Shin laid the girl in the grave.

Sirzechs who was still watching over the group stepped forward murmuring a spell under his breath. Once he finished a red magic circle encompassed the whole for a moment before fading out of existence.

"Since neither of you wanted to revive the nun, which was probably a wise idea I placed a seal on her grave. No one can disturb her body in any way now. Not even if it was a devil depraved enough to dig up a body to reincarnate as a peerage member."

Nodding in thanks Issei mutely carved Asia Argento onto the grave marker he made while Shin refilled the grave. At that point everyone held a moment of silence for the death they were unable to prevent.

 **A few days later**

Sirzechs and Sona's plans for remodeling Issei's current home went off without a hitch. Because of how grandiose Sirzechs and his team were planning the remodeled home to be, while Issei and Koneko were at school their rooms were the first ones to be redone. After just the first day Issei's room, Koneko's room, his human parents room, the kitchen, original two bathrooms, and living room were all expanded and upgraded.

On the second day several lower floors were added. The first of which was a home movie theater that came fully equipped with a snack bar. The next floor down had an indoor spring. The third floor was home to a training room for Issei and his peerage to continue training in.

With the third day done another seven bedrooms were added to the building, before having everything rearranged so that Issei's Room, Koneko's room, and his adoptive parents room were on the fourth floor which was the top floor each of the three rooms having their own private bathroom. The two floors below held four bedrooms each for now only housing a bed and wardrobe since they were currently empty. Floors two and three also had two bathrooms each.

On the fourth and final day of remodeling, a private library, study, and second lounge space were added to the first floor. The fourth day was also the day Zoephiel and Kalawarner woke up. Luckily Issei had been checking up on them when they started to awaken.

"Wait… didn't I die?"

"I thought we did."

"I felt bad that you had to sacrifice yourselves. I mean sure you guaranteed that I was able to defeat Dohnaseek and rather quickly I'll add but… we probably could have overwhelmed him after a while. Sure it wouldn't have been fast but he would run out of stamina eventually."

"So because you felt it was stupid of us to risk ourselves like that for an easy win you revived us."

"That's one way to put it. But if you two don't want to stay that's fine."

"Who said anything about leaving? I owe you one now, and I intend to stick around till I've repaid the favor. I mean sure I have to give Azazel my report on the incident but I can use magic to ask him to meet me somewhere so I can explain."

"Even though I was blackmailed into coming to this town I do like the place and want to stick around. It wouldn't hurt to stick with you."

"There's no need to call me. Shortly after the battle concluded I was approached by Sirzechs, and he explained what happened. I know now that you two are devils I don't have the right to order you around but… My last order to you is to do what you want."Azazel spoke, as he walked into the room, Sirzechs standing right behind him giving a pleased smile to his son for his words.

"Alright then. I suppose I should tell you what pieces I used to revive the two of you. Kalawarner, I used one of my knights on you since I saw your sword. As for you Zoephiel I used a bishop piece."

"If I recall correctly the knight piece is supposed to be for fighters that are more speed and skill based. That's right up my alley."

"Bishops are supposed to be magic specialists right? Good, I was one of the more talented magicians in the lower ranks of the Grigori. I actually have more talent with defensive stuff like barriers and strength buffs."

"Oh that reminds me. I don't know if you two were still awake at that point but you made Dohnaseek drop **Twilight Healing**. I was wondering if you wanted to see if it would accept you."

"I've always liked being supportive and healing is the best support you can give. Sure, lets see if it thinks I'm a suitable host."

Issei pulled the two rings out of his pocket and handed them over to Zoephiel who placed them on her fingers with a smile. After a moment she reached out to Kalawarner intending to attempt to heal the small injures she still had from being defeated by Dohnaseek. After a second Zoephiel's hands were coated in a warming green glow and Kalawarner was feeling much better.

"I'm glad to see you two make a good friend… Well I've got to get back to searching for Kokabiel. I can't make peace with any faction until he's been brought down and honestly speaking, I'm worried about what he's planning. No one has seen or heard from him in two months."

After that Azazel left using his own magic circle to get away. Sirzechs who was still standing in the doorway just looked at his son for a moment with a soft smile before speaking. After he said what he wanted Sirzechs copied his fellow faction leader and teleported away with his magic circle.

"Azazel is right, it is good to see you becoming friends. After all a good friend is the best ally you can ask for in any situation." After that Issei asked the two if they'd prefer to stay in with him in his newly remodeled home of if they'd like to get their own place. Neither one really wanted to stray too far from their new friend so they said they'd stay in his house which after exploring they declared was more of a manor than a house.

Once they had settled in, choosing to bunk together in the same room Issei gave them a basic rundown of his days, as both of the former fallen-angels were old enough to have graduated high school he said they had the freedom to attend college if they wanted, or they could get a part time job to earn money to redecorate their room as they wanted it. They could basically do whatever they wanted, though he did say that Kuoh was a very supernatural city so the did need to be careful.

After thinking it over they decided that the two of them would spend 6 hours a day working a part time job to buy whatever they wanted. At that point Sona had come by to introduce herself to Kalawarner.

"Oh miss Sitri, its nice to see you again"

"You are part of my fiancee's peerage and we are probably going to end up as good friends, so please just call me Sona."

"Wait you two are engaged?"

"long story short my parents and I had a contract that the first person who could beat me in chess would become my fiancee."

"And you're okay with that? No offense Issei, I just don't know you that well yet."

"I made my parents agree to the contract years ago so I'm fine with that part. I'm more than happy that Issei is my fiancee though. Even without the marriage contract I would have said yes to him."

"In that case I am happy for you two."

"Yes congrats you two."

"besides introducing myself to Kalawarner, I needed to tell you something Ise. Normally you'd have to schedule it but as your fiancee I was able to do it for you. During the full moon next week you and your peerage will be allowed to enter the familiar forest and claim your own familiars. Though It's possible that you guys could find multiple familiars."

"Thank you for telling me. Also if you wouldn't mind I'd like you to join us then. I still haven't learned all the ins and outs of being a peerage king so I'd like someone that could save me from making a mistake to be close just in case."

"Sure, I was wondering what kind of familiar you'd find so helping you discover one sounds fun."

* * *

S.R: There. I made you an OC are you happy now my dear sister in-law? For the other viewers Zoephiel was made because my sister in-law asked me to make an OC for her in this story. So because she reminds me of Azazel I made her a fallen-angel.


	12. Familiars and Sona's Peerage Grows

S.R: Alright, alright everybody put down the pitchforks and let me explain a few points.

Asia was not revived as part of Issei's peerage for a reason. She also couldn't have been revived into Sona's peerage since she already has two bishops and I have all her pieces planned out. Anyways if you noticed all they did was guide Asia to the did not become her friends. So answer me this. When you don't know how a person would react what do you do? I mean she was a nun, devout and loyal to God. They had no clue how she would react to becoming a devil, and so decided not to risk it.

If you read my little talks before and after the chapters you would have seen that I explained why the OC was revived in Asia's stead. As for Kalawarner, well Issei explained it in the last chapter. He felt bad that she and Zoephiel basically killed themselves to let him easily beat Dohnaseek. Not to mention when asked for peerage ideas Kalawarner was mentioned once or twice by a few of you.

Issei: Okay boss are you done explaining, I want to get this show on the road!

S.R: You're just saying that because of the familiars… Fine. Let's get going here.

* * *

After the incident at the church things quieted down a bit and the two peerages were able to relax. They still continued to train like the had in preparation for storming the church just not as intensely.

Caving into Issei's offer to see what their training was like after two days Kalawarner went with him and Koneko to meet up with Shin. After learning that shin was a swordsman Kalawarner decided to test his ability and found herself agreeing to join in their sparing sessions. Kalawarner warmed up to Issei and Koneko rather quickly, and after meeting Sona's team she was open with them as well but not quite as much as she did with Issei and Koneko.

Zoephiel found herself bonding with Issei and Koneko as well. She spent her free time with Sona and Tsubaki, quickly befriending the two. All in all she had come to enjoy the situation about four days after waking up. She liked that Issei was a very casual person, as he argued against the formality she and Kalawarner had tried to interact with him using.

The two former fallen-angels found themselves talking constantly about how natural it felt being friends with the group and curious as to how it had happened so quickly. They both agreed it was a very good thing that they could be themselves and not have to worry about acceptance with their new friends. As the week passed the two felt like they had been part of the group their whole life.

Eventually it came time for Issei to take his peerage to the Familiars Forest. Sona had set up the magic circle for them, and just as they were getting ready to teleport, Sona was called away by her bishops.

"I know you can handle it Ise, so go on and get your peerage their familiars. I'll be here when you get back."

"Are you sure you don't want me to help? Momo sounded pretty serious."

"We'll be fine Issei. Now you need to get going before you're late"

At that Issei sighed and his peerage found themselves stepping out of the magic circle into a decent sized clearing. Koneko having been to the forest before with Rias called her familiar and let it have some time back home in the forest.

"Welcome! Welcome!"

"Thank you for seeing us tonight."

"It's my pleasure. Now how many people are we finding a familiar for"

"Counting myself three."

"Do any of you have an idea of what you want as a familiar?"

"I'm rather partial to dogs"

"Um, I'd like to find a bird of some kind"

"I don't have any particular preference"

"Well then, We'll head this way first as most of the canine familiars living in the forest like to live at the edge of the lake a little further in"

The group began walking, it was mostly quiet aside from the Forest Master asking Issei questions about himself to help narrow down potential familiars. As they approached the lake hunting for a canine familiar for Zoephiel, Issei felt Ddraig stirring in the back of his mind.

' _ **I can sense an old friend nearby… She probably won't be happy to hear from me or see you since you are my host due to an accident I'm sure she'd spend all day ranting to you about, but I do need to speak with her. My old friend Tiamat is in this forest. Would you mind finding her before we left?**_ '

' _Sure thing Ddraig._ _Actually If you can guide me to her, I'll ask the Forest Master to keep leading everyone else on their search.'_

' _ **I can do that.**_ _'_

"excuse me Forest Master? I have the **Boosted Gear** and Ddraig asked me to find his old friend that he sensed nearby. Would you mind if I split off from you for a bit to find her?"

"Well I don't mind, just be careful."

"Thank you. Koneko please help them find a familiar to."

With that Issei walked away from the group in the direction that Ddraig had pointed him. Eventually he found a humongous cave. Stretched out on the ground asleep just inside was a large pale blue dragon. Guessing that it was Tiamat Issei studied her for several moments. Her wings were folded in on her back but he could tell that even with how spacious the cavern she was sleeping in, it was too small for her wings when they were fully stretched out. Tiamat had two sets of horns. One twisting and rolling, like a pair of ram horns. The other set only curved enough so that they did not stick straight up.

Funnily enough Issei was too absorbed in studying Tiamat to notice she had woken up because of his presence.

" **Are you going to stare at me all day?** "

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't realize you had awoken."

"I can smell Ddraig on you but… You seem so different from him."

" **It is true that this boy is my host old friend. But you are right in that he different from my previous hosts.** "

" **Let me guess? He's actually willing to help you take the blame for destroying some of my treasure in your fight with Albion?** "

"So that's why you said she was pissed at you."

" **Actually Tiamat I have had a few previous hosts gather the pieces of that crown, and I found the Grimoire full of spells with my last host. I asked Issei here to find you so I could give them back.** "

As the red dragon sealed in Issei's body spoke, he forcefully summoned the **Boosted Gear**. Once it had fully manifested the green gem started glowing brightly before a large tome and a huge crown could be seen within the glow. Tiamat gingerly accepted the two items back.

" **I accept your apology Ddraig. Now then I'm fairly interested in your new host. He seems very powerful, yet humble.** "

"Well apparently I was kidnapped from my cradle as a baby before having my genetics messed with making me a human and thus allowing me to be Ddraig's host, even though I was born a full blooded devil."

" **Ah yes, I recall the current Lucifer raising hell trying to find his lost son. No wonder you are so powerful.** "

" **He's even stronger than you know. Before he was found and revived as a devil, he was very sickly due to his ice magic fighting fighting me for dominance yet he could boost for twenty minutes straight before hitting his limit.** "

" **Well then, I have a proposal for you.** " Tiamat started as her body started to shrink and change shape until she was a human girl with straight pale blue hair framing her face and falling over her shoulders. Her eyes were a deep blue that reminded Issei of the depths of the ocean. All in all she was extremely fair looking. But Issei didn't care about that as he already had Sona.

"How would you like to have a Dragon King as your familiar?"

"Well I would be honored but are you sure you want to do this?"

"Honestly yes. I've been here in the Familiar Forest for a long time now. I've grown bored and with your power I'm sure there will be interesting fights in your future."

Once she had convinced Issei that she was sure, he made the familiar pact with her. Now on his right shoulder was a blue dragon head tattoo like mark. In the same place on Tiamat's shoulder was the red magic circle that Issei used when casting magic. The two let their new bond settle into place as Tiamat declared him her master before heading off to rejoin his peerage as they hunted for familiars.

Before they could get too far, their path was blocked by an odd girl. What made her so odd was that she was green, and as Issei looked at her he noted she seemed to be made of jello.

" **You are very handsome. Would you be my husband?** " The girl asked looking directly at Issei.

"I have a fiance already so I am going to refuse."

" **How about making me your mistress? That works too!** "

"My heart belongs to my future wife. I will not betray her by having a mistress."

" **But can she do this?** " Her form started melting for a moment before reshaping itself. Now instead of appearing around the same height as Issei, the girl was taller and had a more voluptuous body. Everything about the girl now screamed mature and sensual yet Issei still didn't care.

"Enough slime! Can't you see my master is not interested in you?"

" **But why? How can you turn down someone who can become whatever you want?** "

"Sona is already what I want. Please leave me alone now."

" **No! I want you, so I will make you mine!** " The slime girl yelled at him before lunging forward. Tiamat smirked as she spat a small fireball at the slime, but was shocked to see that she spun around the fireball gracefully before continuing latching onto Issei and enveloping his body.

She tried to pull his face to hers but had to move and let go of him When Tiamat used her exceptional talent with fire to cause the slime to melt.

" **Dammit that's no fair!** " She pouted. As she sulked Issei and Tiamat started to walk away. Realizing they were leaving her behind she rushed off after them, intent on following him til she got what she wanted.

Eventually they caught up to his peerage. He explained what happened with Tiamat as he introduced her to the group, shocking the Forest Master. Considering the fact they already noticed his absurd charisma the three women of his peerage just rolled their eyes after learning that he had made a Dragon King his familiar. Issei was happy to see that while he had been talking with Tiamat both Zoephiel and Kalawarner had found their own familiars as well.

Funnily enough Zoephiel's familiar was a giant wolf whose pelt matched her hair color exactly. She mentioned that it was boy and told Issei that she had named him Faelen. Faelen curled himself protectively around her until Zoephiel convinced him that Issei was friendly. At that he slowly padded forward and sniffed at Issei's hand for a moment before licking it showing that he accepted the boy.

Kalawarner had found herself a very regal and proud looking bird, that after examining Issei realized was a falcon. Unlike Faelen who was protective of his master the falcon just tilted it's head as it studied Issei. Kalawarner told her king that since they found the bird in a willow tree she decided to name it Willow.

Once everyone was ready they started making their way back to the clearing they entered the forest from, noticing their stalker but saying nothing. Issei was getting tired of being followed so just before they entered the clearing he turned to the slime girl.

"What is your name?"

" **My name is Tawni. Did you change your mind and want to be mine?** "

"Not at all. I stand by what I said earlier. But I'm getting tired you following me and pouting so I'll make you a deal. You can come with us, but no more trying to convince me to leave my fiance alright?"

" **But… Fine I won't try and steal you. It's boring here so maybe if I go with you I can find something entertaining. But I can't leave the forest without a master.** "

"There's no limit on how many familiars you can have. Though the most I've seen someone have is 6." the Forest Master spoke up, essentially giving Issei the go ahead to get another familiar. Nodding at the mans words Issei made a familiar pact with Tawni, gaining a green mark in the shape of a raindrop on his shoulder right under the pact mark for Tiamat. Similarly to Tiamat Tawni had Issei's red magic circle appear as a pact marker on her arm in the same location.

Tawni also changed her appearance, the green coloration she had fading and being replaced with a more human skin tone. She had styled her hair similarly to Tiamat, letting the green locks of hair flow over her shoulders and down her back just a bit. She had the sense to make clothes appear too, wearing a green shirt with a white smiley face drawn on it and a black skirt.

" **Yay! I have a master now!** "

As Tawni started celebrating the rest of the group just sighed at her cheery attitude. Issei thanked the Forest Master for his assistance, and then everyone grouped together in his magic circle, Tawni excitedly latching onto Issei's hand.

They returned to Kuoh teleporting into the student councils office as Issei was hoping to spend a bit more time with Sona before going to bed for the night. However when they returned it was a slight shock because she had two new faces in the room. But they seemed familiar to Issei especially after he noticed they were wearing the girls uniform from the school.

"Oh good timing, I was just explaining to these two about the supernatural world. As you know before you guys left to get familiars Momo called me away. She had gone to visit a client for a contract, but after arriving in their apartment complex she found these two being attacked by a wondering vampire."

"If it was that bad you should have asked us to come with you."

"Issei I know you are going to be protective of me, but I can handle some of these things without your excessive power."

"If you are sure… but remember I'm your rook. If you get in trouble you can count on me to come save you. After all I'm also your fiancee."

"Um excuse me… but I'm still a little confused. Why would you tell us about the supernatural? We're normal girls not some special monsters or something." Issei and Sona both turned to look at the girls once more. Before either one could say anything the other girl had spoken up.

"Sorry, Yura but I've been trained to deal with supernatural beings. My family comes from a clan that specializes in exorcising demons, which are different from devils just so you know. But anyway being attacked by that vampire might have been my fault. He was probably hunting down people from my family."

"… I should be mad that my best friend was hiding this from me, but I can understand why. Still why would you tell me? I'm not special… I'm also certain you could erase my memories of the attack."

"Wait you aren't mad that he was attack us because of me?"

"Nope. For all we know he thought we'd taste good. I'm not going to blame you for that. And even if he did attack because of you, I still wouldn't because it's just what your family does. I can't be mad that your family has enemies due to their job."

"Thanks Yura. It means a lot that you don't blame me."

"Since you asked why I would tell you Yura I'll explain. I chose to tell you because you don't have to be special. With the knowledge that it exists you can help stop things like that from happening again. Knowledge is power. By knowing about the supernatural you will be more wary of something happening, allowing you to catch on faster."

"But what can I do? I don't know how to fight and even if I did I don't have the power to fight things like that vampire."

"Don't feel bad. I wasn't strong enough either Yura."

"But you at least know what you are doing Tomoe."

"It wasn't enough… President Sona. You were strong enough to easily defeat that vampire… I know how devil peerages work. Would you… Will you allow me to join your peerage and help me grow stronger?"

The girl named Tomoe requested of Sona before bowing her head, pleading with Sona. After a moment her friend Yura bowed her head as well begging for the same thing so she could help her friend. Sona looked to Issei, who by this point had dismissed his peerage and asked Koneko to show his new familiars around and help them get used to the town.

Issei just shrugged, signaling her that it was her choice what she did. On one hand she would gain more peerage members and increase their fighting power. On the other she was drawing an innocent girl into the supernatural. Granted the girl was willing to do it so she could help her friend but still.

"Yura, are you absolutely sure? There is no going back after this. By joining my peerage you two will become devils."

"I don't care. If I can help Tomoe I will do it!"

Sona sighed as she summoned her evil pieces. Remember how when she arrived Tomoe was fending the vampire off with a sword while Momo acted as backup, Sona pulled out a knight piece for Tomoe. As Yura didn't have anything special about her, Sona just grabbed a pawn piece for her. Instructing the girls to lay down she placed a the pieces with their respective person before speaking the chant turning the two into devils.

"Come back here tomorrow after school and I'll introduce you to the rest of my peerage. After that I'll help you train." The two nodded as they left Sona alone in the office with Issei.

"It's been a long night. I just want to cuddle up with you and sleep at this point."

"I somewhat know the feeling."

"Hey Ise? Would you mind if I moved in with you?"

* * *

S.R: Well... I didn't intend to bring Yura and Tomoe into the story that way, but I guess it works. Now then for those of you that read these things. I am playing around with Sona's peerage, but I know who is joining it and what piece/pieces they will be. If you are curious as to the peerages I'll list them.

N/A = Not in the story yet or not yet revealed.

Issei's peerage: King- Issei. Queen- N/A. Bishops- Zoephiel, N/A. Rooks- Koneko, N/A. Knights- Kalawarner, N/A. Pawns- N/A.

Sona's peerage: King- Sona. Queen- Tsubaki. Bishops- Momo, Reya. Rooks- Issei. Knights- Tomoe, N/A. Pawns- Shin (x2), Yura (x1).

Rias's peerage: King- Rias. Queen- Akeno. Bishops- N/A. Rooks-N/A. Knights- Kiba, N/A. Pawns- Matsuda (x4), Motohama (x4)


	13. Rias's Challenge and Gasper Unsealed

S.R: I've got nothing this time. Let's just get on to with the story.

* * *

The day after Issei and his peerage claimed their familiars he learned Sona was being serious with her question. She had moved into his house, Tsubaki following in her kings lead. Tsubaki claimed one of the empty rooms on the fourth floor so she could stay close to her best friend. Sona had not only moved in with Issei like she asked, but since they were engaged already she moved into his room making the boy blush at the thought. Which lead to the two teens being teased by everyone else as they now shared a bed, even though they had still yet to do much beyond kissing and cuddling.

Right after meeting with her two newest peerage members and explaining things in more detail for Yura and Tomoe she and her queen had Momo and Reya take Yura and start teaching her some of the basics while Tomoe was sent with Issei and Koneko to join the melee fighters in training. Tomoe had thrown herself into the training with gusto taking a liking to Kalawarner and Shin since they were fellow sword wielders.

Other than that the only interesting thing to happen before Summer break started for the high school students was that Rias had made up with Issei. She mentioned to him in secret why she had been so rude to him and apologized profusely for letting her secret fear rule her actions. Issei understood how fear could lead people to do all sorts of things forgave his aunt, and the two started over.

After mending their relationship Issei helped Sona forgive Rias for her fathers spoiling actions in bribing the council and the three High class devils had taken to meeting twice a week to give updates on how their peerages were doing contract wise, and just chat like normal teenagers. Which was exactly what Issei thinking of when he walked into the Occult Research Clubs club-room.

"Hey Rias, Sona sorry I'm late."

"Who is this peasant addressing you two so casually?"

"Who the hell are you?"

"Clearly you don't understand not to speak without permission from your betters."

"Calm down now! Both of you. Arguing like children. You should be ashamed." Sona cut in as she saw Issei's face and the tell tale signs that he was about ready to attack the other man in the room.

"Clearly you two have no idea what you're doing allowing a small weakling like this speak out of turn."

"You wanna put your money where your mouth is asshole?"

"Dammit, why do men never listen? Rias would you call Grayfia? She should be able to get the two of them to stop butting heads before they try to kill each other."

Nodding at her friends words and ignoring the two men puffing their chests as they tried to intimidate the other Rias created a magic circle next to her ear as she called her sister in-law. Filling the silver haired woman in on the situation she wasn't surprised at all when Grayfia's magic circle appeared in the room before she could finish.

Grayfia's eyes hardened when she saw Riser Phenex of the Phenex clan and the man Rias was supposed to marry. They softened a bit when she saw her son, calling the older man out on his horrible attitude, but she knew she had to step in before the two started fighting. That would cause quite a bit of destruction.

"Enough!"

Both men turned to the Silver haired woman, backing away from each other when they saw her slight aggravation. Issei having trained with his mother knew he had to stop or he'd be in trouble. Riser on the other hand having heard stories of the strongest queen but never seen her power was less fearful, but backed away respectfully since she out ranked him.

"As you wish, miss Grayfia. Though I don't understand why you three won't let me destroy this arrogant little human."

Issei winced when Grayfia shot a small icicle past the blonde man he had been arguing with, keeping quiet so as not to turn her anger his way.

"You claim he is arrogant, yet you do not even know who this boy is."

"Please enlighten me then."

"I'm sure you've heard about how years ago a stray devil managed to kidnap my newborn child right out of his cradle."

"Yes, I've heard about the incident. I've also heard that your lost son was found, but there is no way this weak little boy is your lost son."

"Issei, if you would loosen your control on your power for a moment?"

Issei did as asked shocking the blonde man with how fine a control he had to make his massive power seem non-existent. After a moment he restrained his power once more before moving to hug his mother and sitting down next to her as she prepared to be a mediator between Riser and Rias.

"Issei is in fact my lost nephew, therefore he like us is a High class devil and deserves respect."

"I humbly apologize for my ignorance, though I must say to be as strong as you are and hide it so well… You are very talented."

"Thanks. Now that you know who I am would you tell me who you are already?"

"I am Riser Phenex of the Phenex clan. I only came to the human world in an attempt to convince my future wife to come back to the underworld. She should not waist her time here with these worthless humans."

"I told you, I will not marry you Riser. Marriage agreement between our parents or not, I refuse."

"I am your future husband and you cannot deny me. We are both from noble families, and pure blood devils are rare. Surely you can understand how important it is we get married."

"I. Will. Not. Marry. You."

"I probably shouldn't put my nose in this but I can't help it. Surely you can dissolve the agreement and ask another noble."

"It is expected of us noble males to have children to continue our houses. Because of that I will likely take on multiple wives."

"So then why try so hard? Why not find another devil that is more willing?"

"Since you are her family you might not think of her this way, but how could I not want to marry her? She's beautiful and powerful, and I want to marry her."

"If I may" at this point Grayfia spoke up. Having been next to Sirzechs when his father Zeoticus explained to her husband the ins and outs of the marriage agreement she knew the one way Rias had to get out of becoming Riser's wife.

"In the agreement contract it is stated that if one of the two in the engagement is unhappy with the situation they may request to hold a Rating Game to break off the engagement."

"Is this what you wish Rias?"

"Yes."

"Well then, I have a full peerage so I have a sure advantage on top of experience in Rating Games already. So I will be kind and grant you a month to train and possibly gather more members than the two you dismissed when I arrived. One month from today, we will hold our Rating Game."

With his piece done Riser vanished. Everyone in the room looked to Rias as she sighed.

"Why did I have to be engaged to an arrogant asshole… I suppose I should be glad he came by himself this time though."

"What do you mean by that?"

"As you heard he claimed he will have multiple wives… He was wording it politely since Grayfia was here, but he was meaning sex slaves. He is a womanizing jerk, who spent most of the time flirting and groping his queen right in front of me when he last came to try and convince me to marry him."

"I knew he was faking being polite but that's just…. I almost wish I was the one he'd have to battle so I could tear him a new one."

"As much as I appreciate the thought this is my problem not yours."

"But we could make it his problem"

Rias and Issei turned to look at Sona with questioning eyes, whereas Grayfia knew exactly what her future daughter in-law was thinking. Nodding her head to the girl, Grayfia excused herself to get back to work. Though she intended to make sure that the teens could go through with Sona's idea despite the unique situation her son was in.

"Remember I had to use two mutated rooks on top of his king piece to revive him. He is part of my peerage because of that. We have a unique situation as he can deny being my rook when he wants to though. I don't know exactly how it works just that according to Ajuka it was something to do with using two different pieces from two different peerages to bring him back."

"So if he acknowledges it you can trade me his pieces, and he can fight for me?"

"I'd be down for that. He needs taken down a few pegs based of what you told me about him. But if I join your fight does that mean my peerage has to?"

"No. A devil can only have their direct peerage members fight for them in a Rating Game even if one of their peerage members has their own peerage."

"But even with you joining me I don't know if we'll have enough man power to beat Riser. After all he is from the Phenex clan and they have remarkable healing abilities."

"Then we have to overwhelm him… Do you think Akeno and Kiba would be able to at least distract his peerage for say half an hour?"

"Not alone. Why what are you thinking?"

"Well since being revived the amount of boosts I can take before I reach my limit has increased tremendously. But after half an hour I have enough power from the boosts to freeze even my the dragonfire from Ddraig, who claims to have the hottest flames in existence."

"Take Riser out of the game, with by immobilizing him... I like the idea. But if you need that long Kiba and Akeno would require help. I wonder..."

"You aren't thinking of-"

"Yes, yes I am Sona. I think with Issei's help Gasper can finally learn to control his Sacred Gear... If I can get Sirzechs to agree at least."

"Who is Gasper?"

"You already know Kiba and Akeno, but along with them I have a third peerage member named Gasper, he's my bishop. But he has no control over his Sacred Gear and it's immense power so we had to seal him away to prevent him from accidentally harming people."

"What is his Sacred Gear?"

"It's called **Forbidden Balor View** , and it grants him the ability to temporarily stop time for anything within his view. Even with no control he can freeze things in time for around 10 minutes."

"Sounds like he's already pretty dangerous, but just think of what he could do once he can control it. I'm sure it'll be fun."

"Are both of you crazy? The only person Gasper has ever met that was immune to his Sacred Gear was Sirzechs!"

"Maybe as papa's son I will also be immune."

 **That night**

"I'm glad to see you two getting along now, and it's very good to see you sticking up for her Issei."

"I would do anything for my friends and family."

"I wish I could say I raised you well… But I have to give that credit to Iseki and Emiko."

"Don't feel bad papa, it wasn't your fault."

The conversation between the two stopped as Rias had lead them to a sealed door. After they had decided to try and help Gasper Rias immediately called her older brother who cleared a bit off his schedule to make time to unlock the door for Rias, since he was the one that sealed Gasper.

"Keep in mind I want to make sure that Issei is immune. If he isn't I will seal Gasper away again."

Nodding her head Rias stepped aside so her older brother could undo his seal. Once it was gone and the door opened Rias spoke softly as she looked at a cardboard box in the center of the floor.

"Hey there Gasper. I found someone who might be able to help you control your Sacred Gear. Will you come out of there and meet him?"

"N-no! New people scare me!"

"You know you have to come out of there eventually."

"I don't want to!"

Rias rolled her eyes and sighed as she tried to think of a way to coax the scared Dhampir out of his box. Issei having heard enough, marched right up the box and picked it up, before dumping the boy inside onto the floor in front of him.

"You're a man right? Men like us can't afford to be scared of everybody and everything. Besides you're part of my aunts peerage and she may need you. Do you want to let her down, or do you want to give her your best effort?"

"B-b-but people are scary!" Gasper cried as he glanced up at Issei quickly before looking away.

"If you learn to control your power you don't have to be scared. If you want I'll help you not just with your Sacred Gear but I'll help you overcome your fears too. But to be able to do that you have to be willing. I want to be your friend and help out, but you have to be willing to try and put in the effort with me."

Something about Issei's words had the cross dressed Dhampir feeling like he could overcome anything. He shakily looked at Issei, hoping that his **Forbidden Balor View** wouldn't be able to affect him. Gasper hoped he wouldn't be able to harm the kind person that wanted to help him. The person that had given him hope that he could have true friends.

Issei felt a strange pulse wash over him and knew it came from Gasper when his eyes suddenly changed. Shaking it off he extended his hand to the boy on the floor. As he helped Gasper up Issei introduced himself. The two slowly getting to know each other.

In the doorway Sirzechs was happy, and smiled as he left not wanting to get in the way of the intense training he was certain his son was going to put the young Dhampir through. Rias was just shocked at how with just a few actions and good intention Issei had managed to get the scared cross dresser to come out of his shell even if it was only slightly.

* * *

S.R: Yes I know I'm bringing Gasper in early. There's a reason for that.

Issei: Is that reason the fact that Gasper is actually your second favorite guy from the series?

S.R: I'm not confirming nor denying that question.


	14. The Rating Game

S.R: I should sleep… But I don't wanna. Instead how about I entertain myself by giving you all something to read. Especially since come Monday I won't be updating this one as much because my week away from work will be over. Also did you guys know the name Tawni is from the Irish, and that it's meaning is the color green?

Issei: I don't care about that, just shut up and go already.

S.R: I will **sticks tongue out**. Let's go my fair readers!

Reminder below:

"rawr" - speaking

' _ _rawr__ ' - thoughts/ telepathy

"rawr" - emphasized word

" ** **rawr**** " - beast talking

' _ ** _ **rawr**_**_ ' - beast thinking

* * *

Issei spent around an hour talking to Gasper and explaining his plan. Fortunately as a Dhampir Gasper could walk in the daylight. Since Issei still needs to sleep, He tasked Gasper with slowly getting used to being awake and out of the room he was sealed in. He allowed the boy to have his box with him though.

"If you start getting scared or nervous go ahead and climb in your box. Take fifteen minutes and clear your mind then get out again. Right now I need to get you used to being out and active during the day. I still have to sleep after all. Now I can't spend every waking moment by your side to help out but I will be around as much as I can alright buddy? If you can get used to being out and awake during the day for at least two hours I'll call it a success and we'll move on to the next step."

"I-I-I'll try."

"Good that is our first step. Once you are able to be out and moving for two hours a time we'll work on controlling your Sacred Gear okay?"

Gasper nodded to Issei's words feeling the support his new friend was offering him. He resolved himself to getting better for his new friend. Yawning Issei decided to call it a night and left for home.

Upon entering his room however he sighed heavily. In the time since he had returned from the Familiar Forest Issei's familiars Tiamat and Tawni had taken to changing out of their human forms and shrinking down to small handheld sized bodies so that they could each take one of the spare pillows into his room and curl up on the floor with them. That wasn't a problem.

What was a problem was every time he left Tawni alone with Sona she started to fight with his poor fiancee over who he should be with. As was the case when he walked into his room after meeting Gasper. Sona was curled up in bed a book she had probably been trying to read set on the night stand next to her, Tiamat in mini dragon form had already curled up on her pillow, and Tawni was in her normal slime form sitting in a chair facing Sona while they argued.

"He is my fiancee and you can't change that!"

" **But why? It's not like a man can't have multiple lovers.** "

"Issei isn't selfish. He is no womanizer. Surely after being his familiar for a little more than a month now you know he doesn't want to have a harem."

" **So then why does it have to be you?** "

"Two reasons. One I love him. As for number two, I made my parents agree not to place me in an arranged marriage as I would only marry a person that can beat me at chess and Issei's the only one to have ever beaten me."

" **Wow good for you… But seriously do you think you're enough for him?** "

"It doesn't matter if I think I'm enough for him. It's his choice, and he's always telling you no."

" **but why** **? I can shape shift into a copy of you and** **I could** **probably please him better after all.** "

"Why you dirty little-"

"Enough you two. Seriously Tawni I told you I'm not interested. I've also told you not to antagonize Sona."

" **Yes master...** "

"Sona I'm yours you know that. But if Tawni does start bothering you again just remember this. You are the one I want. Not a clone of you. Even if she can look like you she is not you and I can always tell."

As he spoke Issei slipped into the closet to find and set out his close for the next day. As he hunted for an undershirt to where with his school uniform he mentally sent a comment to Tiamat.

' _Next time they start arguing would you please step in and stop it?_ '

' _ **I suppose I could Master… You know I still find it a little off-putting how easily I've taken to calling you Master and doing as you ask. Which is surprisingly little.**_ '

" _Well honestly speaking with how things are I've kinda looked at you as my combat assistant while Tawni is the secretary I guess._ '

Once Issei had finished his task, he entered the private bathroom that had been added onto his room in the remodeling.

" **I wonder if he'd like me-** "

" **Tawni. Do not finish that sentence. I want to relax and you antagonizing our master's fiancee is annoying enough to keep me from falling asleep. If you keep going I will melt you.** "

Tiamat's words shut her fellow familiar up. Sona smiled and nodded to the blue dragon in thanks before picking her book back up and reading once more. Tawni started sulking after basically being told to be quiet. She shrunk down to her smaller size and slumped down onto her pillow which like Tiamat's was positioned in front of a window so that when they decided to catnap it would be in the sunlight during the day.

Over the next three days Issei started gathering a large number of squishy soft bouncy balls, intending to use them when he moved to the next part of Gasper's training. He checked in on Gasper during his break time and lunch while at school every day and always set aside at least half an hour to just sit and talk with the boy.

After the fourth day Gasper had managed to acclimate himself to being outside of both his sealed room and his box during the day, for not just the two hour goal that Issei had set, but instead he was able to spend around 5 hours outside during the day. Once he had told Issei the good news they jumped right into the next step of Gasper's training.

Starting small Issei would position himself so that he made a straight line with a tree. Then he had Gasper stand in a spot that if you drew a straight line from him it would intersect perpendicularly to the line Issei made with the tree. Making sure he threw the ball slow enough for Gasper to see, he would throw the ball at the tree, telling Gasper to try and freeze time on the ball.

It was a slow process but they managed to get Gasper activating his **Forbidden Balor View** roughly 12% of the time. Once it seemed like they hit the cap for that method he positioned Gasper just off to the side of the tree so that he would see the ball coming his direction. The hope was that would be a little more incentive to stop time on the ball. This method worked better and caused a huge jump in control as Gasper could activate it 60% of the time after a few days that way. By the time three weeks had passed Issei was confident that Gasper was on the right track, and had guided him into meeting each of the three High Class devils peerages. One at a time of course.

While Gasper hadn't gotten full control over his Sacred Gear and there were still minor accidents were he froze people in time, Issei had convinced the boy that was alright, because he could willing undo the time freeze now. Throughout the time Issei spent training the cross dressing boy Issei had been helping instill a little more confidence in Gasper, which helped crack the figurative shell the boy had.

Gasper was still nervous around others, but once he got to know everyone a little better he was no where near as scared and flustered as he would have been without Issei's help. It was a shock to Rias when a few days before the scheduled Rating Game against Riser, she had found Gasper without his box. He wanted to show his new friend that he was trying his best, and so he left his box in his room. Instead of hiding inside it when he got nervous the Dhampir had taken to closing his eyes and doing breathing exercises to calm himself.

He had come such a long way thanks to Issei's help that she resolved to have a talk with her father after the Rating Game against Riser.

The day before the game was scheduled Sona traded Issei to Rias for the match. Riser had come around to see if Rias had changed her mind and backed out. He was surprised when he learned the circumstances that allowed for Issei to be part of Rias's peerage, but he didn't mind even stating that he would have gladly accepted for Issei to participate even without being part of her peerage, thought that might have been because at the time Issei had Tiamat with him and she was in human form.

 **Just before the Rating Game**

In order to keep things from becoming hectic for his son, Sirzechs had managed to get his father, and the current Lord Phenex to agree to host Rating Game privately. The only people allowed to watch were the Gremory family, the Phenex family, Issei's peerage and familiars since the two wanted to watch, and because her Fiancee was participating in the battle Sona Sitri. Sona was only allowed to have her queen present with her though.

That didn't bother her since Tsubaki kept Tawni from antagonizing her as Tiamat would be far to invested in watching her master fight than keeping her fellow familiar in check. Grayfia was the official for the match, and after declaring for it to begin she went straight to the viewers box intent on watching her son showcase why he shouldn't be messed with.

Outside of Sirzechs and Sona no one watching knew that Rias had unsealed Gasper, and so they were all thinking Issei would show off his impressive power since even sitting in a private viewing zone they could feel him release his tight hold on his powers.

The Rating Game was taking place in a replica of the school Rias and her peerage knew well, so everyone was shocked when only Rias's two pawns exited her base. While it could be said that Matsuda and Motohama had become decent fighters due to training with Kiba, everyone knew it was just a distraction at best.

But what surprised everyone was an attack from Akeno who leaned out of the window in the club room that they had been placed in as a base. She shot it a bolt of lighting directly at Matsuda, who proceeded to deflect it right at his friend Motohama who had marched through the door into the gym finding several of Riser's pawns.

Watching the screen in front of them shift to a view from inside the gym they saw Motohama raise his hand shocking everyone once more as they watched it being absorbed by the teen who's power they felt rise just a bit. As he dodged and weaved through the onslaught of melee attacks from Riser's pawns Motohama kept his hand pointed towards the door absorbing more lighting bolts from Matsuda's reflection ability.

Repeating the process a few times, Matsuda fell back once Motohama had absorbed about five times. By that point Motohama had risen in power just enough to take out his enemies before falling as he exhausted himself.

Since Grayfia was the official for the match she had to call out every defeat.

"Four pawns of Riser's peerage have retired."

At this point Kiba dashed in and carried his ally back to base. Before heading out onto the battlefield himself. While the adults watching the battle were impressed by the blow Rias's team had dealt to Riser's peerage, only Sona had started to have an idea of what they were playing at.

Because Issei needed at least half an hour to build up enough boosts to try and freeze Riser to take him out of the game, they were whittling down Riser's team. Because she knew that Gasper had been released, Sona was trying to figure out what the Dhampir was going to do. He was going to be the key to stalling for time after all. Especially since Matsuda and Motohama had been rather quick to tire out taking roughly three minutes to clear four pawns.

Bringing her attention back to the game she watched Kiba start dueling with both of Riser's knights and his remaining pawns. He held his own against them fairly well scoring several major hits. It was then that she realized what was happening, Gasper was activating then deactivating his Sacred Gear on the enemies just long enough for his friends to land attacks that would weaken their enemies just enough to be taking out with only a slight effort. The only reason she was able to catch on to what was happening, as she watched was she knew that despite the training Issei put the boy through Gasper still didn't have full control, it seemed like once or twice every so often his attempts failed as she noticed that some of the hits Kiba scored were not as clean or as deep as the others.

It was when one of Riser's pawns managed to slip behind Kiba and try to attack that Sirzechs caught on to what was happening and he had to applaud Issei's plan since he knew as the one that trained Gasper, Issei would be the one to create the plan for how best Gasper's power could be used. If it weren't for his extremely keen eye sight Sirzechs wouldn't have noticed though. Kiba had been right in the path of the sneaky pawns fist. However the girl was frozen in place just long enough for Kiba to get out of her path before moving again. Knowing that Gasper could shift into a bat or even a group of bats, Sirzechs scanned the area surrounding area on the screen finding a bat hanging from a tree branch roughly ten yards from Kiba and his opponents. Eventually after around twelve minutes Kiba managed to beat all six of his opponents.

"Four pawns and two knights of Riser's peerage have retired." Grayfia announced.

At this point Riser was starting to get frustrated and sent out both rooks, and his bishop before his second bishop and little sister asked to follow them and watch the battle up close. Thinking it over he gave the okay. He also ordered his queen to keep an eye on them from above and not to let Ravel fight or get hurt.

The group moved quick enough to catch Kiba before he could return to Rias's base. Catching Gasper in the corner of his eye, the knight shook his head, the signal meaning not to worry about helping him out of the situation. Kiba knew he didn't have enough energy left to handle all four of them, and didn't want to risk Gasper tiring out before enough time had passed.

He struggled to put up a good fight, and right as he was about to be defeated he was shocked to see Matsuda and Motohama blocking the finishing blow.

"Don't give up so quickly Kiba."

"We've got your back."

even with the addition of the two pawns, it was a one sided fight in favor of Riser's team.

"Hurry up you three. Brother's pissed at how easily they took out the others."

"Yes Ravel"

Despite attempting to follow the bishops orders it took her fellow bishop and the two rooks five minutes to defeat the three boys.

"Two pawns and one knight of Rias's peerage have retired" Grayfia announced starting to worry as the only viewers watching the battle that knew what was happening were still just Sirzechs and Sona.

"I'll admit her peerage did pretty well, but if she and your son aren't going to fight this battle is over."

"Lord Phenex, trust me when I say this game hasn't truly started yet."

"How can you be so sure of that Lord Lucifer?"

"It took me a while but I caught on to my son's battle plan. While its true that Rias's normal peerage has done quite well that wasn't their true aim. They're just stalling time for Issei to be ready."

"What could he possibly do that requires more time, yet not leave their base?"

"Let's just say he has an ability that let's him get stronger over time."

"I see… That should be pretty interesting. Hopefully if he can pull off the win it'll knock some sense into my son."

While the two men spoke, they kept an eye on the viewing screen in front of them since Akeno had appeared on the field. With Gasper's help she was able to take out the two rooks before their team mates could respond to her attack. Akeno made quick work of the one fighting bishop before having to dodge as Riser's queen Yubelluna attempted to attack while she was off guard.

The two were slinging spells back and forth unable to get an edge. Ravel watched in awe, shocked that someone was able to match her brother's queen so evenly. It wasn't until a lull in the battle that she realized she had done nothing at all. Before she could say our do anything though, Akeno spoke up.

"How long do you think it's been since the start of the Rating Game?"

"Too long. You and your fellow peerage members were far beyond what we expected strength wise."

"I'm being serious. I've lost track of the time but... If it's been long enough then even if you beat me it won't matter."

"What nonsense. Sure it's taken us half an hour to get this far but thanks to his instant healing, Lord Riser will win even in a two on one against Rias and the boy named Issei."

"Half an hour you say? Well then, Gasper good work. You've earned it so go ahead and rest!"

"Who are yo talking to?"

As Yubelluna spoke Gasper in bat form flew straight past her and into the base. Akeno smiled as she felt Issei and Rias make their move once Gasper had returned. Not even bothering to finish the battle with Yubelluna she flew off to watch Issei curb stomp Riser.

Despite how the battle had gone Riser had yet to move from the chair he sat himself in before the game began. Staying inside his base and not even acknowledging the teens as they approached. Nodding to Rias, Issei backed off just far enough to be out of the way when using her Power of Destruction she destroyed the building around Riser.

"I suppose it's time to end this farce."

While Riser shook of the debris from the building falling on him Issei made his magic circle, generating a huge amount of power. It was so startling to Riser that he just stared wide eyed, wondering how Issei had gotten strong enough to make him feel chills even as he coated his body in flames in an attempt to warm up. In the viewers box Sona spoke up for the first time since before the match started.

"Issei is about to win this with one move."

"I'll admit he's quite powerful but surely you jest. There's no way he can overcome Riser's instant regeneration."

"He doesn't have to. Defeating an opponent doesn't mean knocking them out. Look closely at their surroundings. He's generating such cold temperatures around him that ice is starting to form. All he has to do is cool it down enough that even Riser's flames will be frozen."

"If he can pull that off, then I severely underestimated just how strong your son is despite being raised as a human, Lord Lucifer."

"Oh he will of that I have no doubt.… I'm certain his plan from the very beginning has been to build up enough power to freeze Riser solid thus forcing him to retire. The only question is if he's built up enough power to thickly encase Riser or if it will be thin enough that Riser will break free."

* * *

S.R: I know, I know it wasn't a very subtle ending there.


	15. Issei vs Riser

S.R: For those of you already talking about Issei's Balance Breaker…. He has not yet achieved it. Because he balanced his training instead of focusing in on the **Boosted Gear** Issei has not even scratched the surface on what it is capable of, only having it's ability to **Boost** , and **Transfer** though he hasn't yet caught on to the fact he has **Transfer**.

Issei: Wait… Does than mean I used it unknowingly last chapter?

S.R: Nope. You just haven't realized that you can gift your power to others yet. Don't worry that will come in due time though.

Issei: Why do I get the feeling you are planning something with the Kokabiel fight?

S.R: Shh…That's not for a few chapters yet.

Issei: Fine, fine I'll shut up now.

S.R: Let's get right into it then.

* * *

Everyone watched the confrontation between Issei and Riser with interest. Akeno having fled from Yubelluna and Ravel arrived just in time to watch ice start forming as Issei walked towards the man who just stared at Issei confused as to where his power came from. Shortly after her appearance Riser's remaining two peerage members caught up and were shocked to see their king and in Ravel's case her older brother struggling to keep his flames alight.

Issei's magic circle floating behind him, expanded rapidly as he approached the man of the Phenex clan. An icy chill flowed through the area as a layer of frost began coating everything within a twenty yard radius of Issei.

"I've been planning and working on this technique specifically for you Riser. As the first opponent I use this on you should feel honored… **Absolute Zero: Arctic Wasteland** "

As Issei finished speaking the frost that had started building up on everything started growing quickly going from just a small dust like layer, to a formidable three inches. Rias had to back up to Akeno's side as even at an extra thirty yards from the edge of Issei's circle she was feeling the chill.

The two girls watched on pleased that things seemed to have gone exactly as they planned. Yubelluna and Ravel both wondering if they'd be able to make a difference if they'd step in. Due to how quickly the ice had built up Riser couldn't even struggle as he was encased. After a few moments Issei's spell finally ended and he heaved a sigh of relief.

However just as Grayfia went to make the announcement that Riser had been retired, the icy cocoon surrounding the man began shaking. Cracks began forming rapidly, spider-webbing through the ice until he had broken free. Panting as he glared at Issei, Riser slowly recovered.

"I'll admit that was powerful. If I hadn't been able to melt the innermost ice just enough to wiggle around you'd have had me."

"Damn. I thought I had you there."

"If but for a moment you did. Because of that you've earned my respect. I'll be taking you seriously now, but first. Yubelluna!"

"Yes, my lord?"

"Stand down. This game is going to end with this battle. Even if I win I probably won't have the energy to beat Rias as well."

"But together we can win, my lord!"

"No. Even with taking Issei seriously I am positive that the two of us would not be able to beat him and Rias afterwords Especially since she still has her queen in play."

"… As you wish then, my lord."

"I know you have a Sacred Gear… When Lord Lucifer informed the devil community of his son's return he mentioned that. But he said he had yet to find out which gear it was."

"Which at the time was probably true… Let me guess. You're questioning if that spell was just my ice magic, or if I used my Sacred Gear as well."

Getting a nod in response Issei sighed as he thought about revealing the truth of his Sacred Gear to more people. In the viewing box however the devils watching were very curious about Issei's statement, asking Sirzechs why he hadn't revealed Issei's Gear to the devil council.

"Son, has he told you about his Sacred Gear yet?"

"I learned what his sacred gear was when we Satan's gave Sona's peerage the order to deal with the rogue fallen-angels. However all four Satan's were present when he revealed it. We decided to keep it under wraps so he could grow strong enough to defend himself once it was found out by the rest of the supernatural world. He has a Longinus after all."

"And you don't think mentioning that would have been a good idea?!"

"Considering how everyone will react, no. I mean look at you two right now. You are acting as if he needs to be imprisoned or worse!"

Sirzechs sharp words had the two older male devils pause for a moment, as they realized what he was saying to be true. Before anything else could be said Sona directed everyone's attention back to the screen as Issei had come to a decision.

"Well to answer you're question yes, I was only capable of doing that thanks to my Sacred Gear here," Issei looked to Sirzechs holding up his left hand with a small smile. Letting his power flow and causing the green gem embedded in the gauntlet to glow Issei continued "I am the current possessor of the Sacred Gear known as the **Boosted Gear** and host to Ddraig."

"In other words you are the Red Dragon Emperor and you will continue to grow stronger. I count myself fortunate to have encountered you at this point in your growth. It is an honor to fight the legendary Red Dragon Emperor after all and if you had been just a little stronger I might not have been able to have this fight."

"Let's bring everything we've got and enjoy it to the fullest then!"

Riser gave Issei a smile at his words, letting his power flow around him. Yubelluna, Ravel, Akeno, and Rias all backing off even further as the two males began clashing. Akeno and Rias were smiling as Riser had basically already admitted defeat.

Ravel on the inside was smiling as well as she watched, happy to see that someone had given her brother the wake up call he needed. She noted it probably happened when he was only just able to free himself from the icy trap Issei had created. After all Riser was widely acknowledged as a powerful devil with his mastery over his flames and regeneration abilities. Yet to see his power seem so ineffective was a shock the blonde devil dearly needed.

Issei and Riser were enjoying themselves as they fought. Now that Riser had started fighting back his flames were much, much hotter and harder to freeze so Issei settled for staying at a distance and using his ice magic to sling spears of ice occasionally creating an ice dragon to attack the blonde devil he was fighting. Riser would melt Issei's icy attacks instantly generating steam. Riser's attacks were blades of flame, or fireballs as he tried to fight Issei's magic with his own.

Issei would either dodge the fire or quickly generate ice to block the flames creating a bit of steam in the process as well. Their clashing magics ended up generating a lot of steam, to the point that their viewers had a hard time clearly seeing the two only just being able to see their outlines and movements.

After a while the two realized that they were getting nowhere and switched from spell casting over to melee, punching and kicking at each other in a very dangerous dance. If it weren't for Issei's **Boosted Gear** they would have been perfectly matched in every aspect except for Risers superior regeneration.

While they blocked each others fists with their own or would use their forearm to bat the attack aside occasionally one would land a hit to the others face or chest. The two seemed to prefer using their fists but they did lash out with a kick every so often, landing a hit to the others side if their leg wasn't blocked or caught and used to push them off balance.

Sona actually snorted at one point because the fight reminded her of an anime that she had seen with Issei. It wasn't an overwhelming beat down for either side, as they were evenly matched despite Issei's power growing every ten seconds since he kept the **Boosted Gear** active. That was due to Riser's older age affording him more years of training and experience to even the playing field.

Slowly but surely the battle shifted into Issei's favor as his attacks had Riser recoiling more and more. Yet to Sirzechs trained eye, he knew the truth. Issei's stamina was starting to fail him even as he grew stronger. If Issei had been battling anyone else amongst the High and Ultimate class devils his stamina wouldn't have been an issue. But his opponent could regenerate from any wound he inflicted and had just as much stamina as he did.

Eventually the clash between the two devils drew to a close funnily enough it ended with Issei's Scared Gear calling out one final **Boost**. Issei had one fist buried in Riser's gut forcing him to bend forward slightly as the older devil had his fist clenched tightly right up agaisnt Issei's cheek pushing his head sideways. For a moment absolutely nothing happened. But then Riser fell backwards and just laid on the ground panting heavily. Issei not quite as worn out as Riser but still tired fell to one knee. But they were both wearing huge grins.

"I've got to… hand it to you. That was one… hell of a fight."

"I… enjoyed it… to"

They spoke huffing out deep breathes between their words. Neither one moved for a few moments as they attempted to regain their breath. Once he could speak without being winded Riser forfeited the match, giving Rias and her peerage the win. Grayfia declared Rias the winner of the Rating Game and everyone was teleported out of the fake school building they had been fighting in.

Issei, Rias, Akeno, and Gasper appeared in a fairly large room that. Resting in a few of the beds inside the room were Kiba, Matsuda, and Motohama though they were all still awake. Issei dismissed his **Boosted Gear** and went to move to one of the beds to lay down for a while, but before he could Issei found himself being tackled into a hug by Sona, rapidly finding himself pulled into a kiss. Wrapping his arms around her he returned the kiss with gusto complete ignoring everyone in the room.

At least he ignored everyone until Rias coughed and pointed out that his peerage appeared. The trio of women from his peerage congratulated him on the win though Koneko temporarily joined his hug with Sona, causing him to pat her head softly. At this point his familiars walked up as well. Both greeting him and praising him for the fight though Tawni was extremely over excited and hyper as she spoke.

The older devils came by more slowly wanting to give him a bit more time to recover before they questioned him about his Sacred Gear, or in Grayfia's case a hug that nearly crushed his ribs.

"Even though we agreed to allow this to be a private match, we still have to inform the devil council of the results… We also have to report that you used your Sacred Gear."

"Honestly, I kept quiet about it because I knew the trouble it would cause. But at this point I don't think I can keep it hidden much longer."

Nodding at his words the two clans leaders thanked Issei for showing them an amazing fight before departing to meet up with the currently still in session Devil Council. Sirzechs told his son that he did well, and gave him a short hug as well, before following his elders lead and disappearing for a meeting with the other Satan's.

Waiting until his mother finally released him from the bear hug she had wrapped him up in Issei requested for his bishop to use her **Twilight Healing** to speed up his healing. She did as asked though they discovered it did nothing for the fatigue he was starting to feel. Declaring that it was nap time Grayfia made a magic circle around the group and took them home. Sending Issei's peerage off to relax she brokered no arguments as she took Issei to his room and tucked him in bed to rest for a while. Once that was done She ushered Rias's peerage to their own homes ordering them to rest as well.

* * *

S.R: I have got nothing to say this time. Just keep on doing what you're doing people.


	16. Relaxing After The Battle

S.R: I know I should have done better with that last chapter. I apologize if it wasn't up to par with the rest of the story, but I am not going to go back and re-write it. I really don't like that arc and was half tempted to leave it out of the story completely. I will try to make up for it as the story progresses however.

Issei: Just put your best foot forward and keep on going.

S.R: That's the plan… Now before I begin this next chapter I want to point out that I will be back at work tomorrow/later today depending on when this goes up. I had a forced week long break giving me the ability to update as much as I have, so I will not be updating as frequently once I'm back at work. Not to mention I still have my other stories to worry about. To be honest I would love to start a consistent schedule for updating but I have a fickle and easily distracted mind for a muse.

Issei: Anything else to say?

S.R: Nope. Let's get on with the story here.

* * *

Rather than immediately start resting after his birth mother had tucked him in Issei just lay in bed wondering if he was progressing in his combat skills fast enough to be ready for the chaos he predicted to come of having it revealed that he was the current holder of the **Boosted Gear**. It was hard to tell at times. Especially when Ddraig praised him for his ungodly potential since his limit of boosts from his Sacred Gear was absurd. Each boost doubles his power after all.

Truly his limit was unheard of. Running the math in his head for the first time since before the battle with Riser, but at least the fifth time since he offered his assistance to Rias in dealing with Riser Issei was astounded once more by the thought. One boost every ten seconds. That means 6 boosts a minute, and he could at this point take boosts for a full 50 minutes before hitting his limit. 6 boosts per minute times 50 minutes was 300 Boosts. 2 to the 300th power was a ridiculously huge number. Did it mean he was extremely strong to be able to become that powerful, or did it mean he was weak but had the potential to become that powerful?

' _Ddraig, am I really getting stronger or do I just have the potential to use that power with certain conditions being met? I mean sure you could argue that being able to handle that power makes me strong, but I can't do it right away and have to build up to it..."_

' _ **Partner, trust me when I say you are exceptionally powerful. It is true that you cannot bring forth that power right from the start of a battle but let me ask you this… How many beings do you know, have actually met their full potential, and of them how many have potential as great as you?**_ '

' _ **I guess you could look at it this way. You are so strong that rather than demolish everything immediately, you ramp up the intensity until finding the right amount of power needed for the situation. You could say that you never bring more than necessary to a fight.**_ '

Issei laid there mulling over Ddraig's words. He knew them to be true, since the dragon had never lied to him before. He was still sitting there thinking about it when the door to his bedroom opened. Granted he was so lost in thought he didn't even notice until he felt a weight gently press into his chest.

Shaking his head in shock he turned to see his fiancee with a small smirk on her face. The two had a game going on, one that was meant solely for the two of them. They would try and catch the other unaware, starting them suddenly with a hug or a kiss. In this instance however Sona had upped the anti getting close enough to cuddle her beloved before he could notice.

"Are you going to sit there and stare at me or put an arm around me and sleep already?"

"Sorry, just had to clear my head..." Issei responded sheepishly rubbing his head with one hand while the other snaked around his girlfriends body and pulled her close as he finally attempted to rest.

Sona smiled softly at him. She could tell something was off even from downstairs where she was attempting to read in the library so he could rest peacefully. But she knew that her presence sometimes calmed his mind enough to relax, which he needed to do after his battle with Riser.

Sona knew Issei was strong and that he would continue to get stronger. Hell he was pretty strong before the incident in which she had to revive him. But for him to match Riser was a shock to her. While Riser's powers might not have been as strong as Issei's the Phenex clan member had a distinct advantage in experience, having had years to learn the ins and outs of his power. Unlike Issei who before becoming a devil once more couldn't risk using his powers too much without causing serious issues.

Sona was so shocked by the fight, that once she found him all she could think of doing was hold him close. She supposed it was something to do with watching her love being so awe inspiring that her brain short circuited. Resolving herself to being a teddy bear for her future husband Sona quietly laid there with Issei, planning to question him about the strategy that he had to have been the one to come up with. Hiding a smile she also intended to scold him for being so bold against his opponent. After all, Issei's plan had been brilliant until he allowed Riser to regain his breath after being frozen. Once he had a couple hours of sleep Issei woke up to the interogation that was Sona pressed up against him asking questions.

"So, now that you aren't ready to fall over on me... What the hell were you thinking letting Riser have a chance to recover after breaking free from your ice?!"

"I wasn't... I didn't think he'd be able to do it. Also as much as I dislike the guy, attacking him while he was speaking would have been rude."

"Well I suppose we should be glad you didn't severely underestimate him. But now I've got to ask how did you come up with that battle plan?"

"I kinda figured Riser would send his peerage out in small groups using different routes but I didn't know how he'd split them up. But based off the power I felt from his team just before the game started I was certain that the only problems would be his one bishop-"

"If you mean his blond bishop then she's also his younger sister. But continue"

"Alright I was certain his sister, his queen and himself would be the only issues. Since we were battling it out in a copy of the school grounds I knew the two best routes for him to attack our base where the gym and they sports field. I had Kiba keep an eye for when they entered the sports field since as a knight I figured he would need a bit more space to work with as his specialty is speed. But since we couldn't see into the gym I had Matsuda reflect some of Akeno's power to Motohama so that he'd be able to handle more than one opponent at a time. I didn't think it would wear Matsuda out just reflecting it, but I also don't think he was able to fully reflect Akeno's lighting."

"I know Gasper was helping Kiba, but how did he come into play with the two perverts?"

"He didn't, that was all Motohama. But once he got back to the base he told us he could only absorb so much and that once he hit that limit he couldn't risk absorbing anymore for at least a full day. that's part of why when he and Matsuda went to rescue Kiba they didn't put up a better fight."

"Why did Matsuda go? after watching things play out I can tell he's a support type, not a fighter."

"He said he couldn't let himself be shown up so easily."

"Typical male pride then... Back to Gasper though, how did you keep him unnoticed until Akeno sent him back to the club house?"

"I'm not sure either honestly. I just told him to be subtle in how he controlled the battle for Kiba."

 **Timeskip**

It had been two weeks since the Rating Game against Riser, and Issei's human parents returned from their vacation while Sirzechs had their house remodeled. Granted they had returned a few days earlier than expected, once again finding Issei and Sona in bed together when they decided to check in on him.

Issei's adoptive father Iseki was bound and determined to believe the two were trying to give him grand kids before they were officially married. His wife Emiko on the other hand was terrorizing the two about the idea, viciously against the two becoming parents before graduating high school let along being married. It was quite funny to everyone who had the pleasure of living in the same house.

Despite the constant teasing from Ieski, and the lectures from Emiko the two teens were glad to have things return to normal in the city. Though Issei had to cringe when he introduced Kalawarner and Zoephiel to his parents as two of the 'bodyguards' that Sirzechs had mentioned him having. His parents might not have taken an instant liking to the two but they did appreciate their willingness to be there for Issei. The cause of his cringe when he introduced them however was an off handed joke from Iseki being whispered in his ear.

"Only two bodyguards son? And both women at that? Are you trying to bring in a harem?"

Thankfully for both males Iseki was quiet enough that none of the women heard his teasing aside from Koneko who mentioned that she wanted to be one of Issei's "bodyguards" as well making the older man back off on the teasing since he knew she wouldn't let anything like his joking thoughts happen.

After that everyone got settled back into their daily routines, happy and content with the situation. None of them knowing the danger that they would soon be placed in. A danger that would push Issei Issei into not just the spotlight in the underworld with the devils, but into the spotlight for the entire supernatural world.

* * *

S.R: So yeah, this chapter is shorter than the others. But I haven't actually had much time to sit at my computer today because I was helping my dad do yard work at his place since he threw his back out. And by yard work I mean I cut down a tree and removed it, cleaned the gutters, and fixed his lawn mower. Why mention this? That's because I wanted to give you guys more to hopefully tide you over a bit while I go back to work. So I'm putting this out now, rather than beef it up a bit more.


	17. Rescuing The Grauzauber (Fanon Arc)

S.R: Welcome back. Before we begin I'd like to point a few things out.

Issei: Such as?

S.R: I am splitting from canon for a few chapters here. I want to get a few more people into yours and Sona's peerages before the fight with Kokabiel.

Issei: Why is that?

S.R: Because at the very least I want another magic user or two between yours, Rias's, and Sona's peerages. I also want to bring Bova into your peerage in a different way and this is a good way to do so. Plus I'll be hinting at something for you, but it won't truly happen for a while still.

Issei: I guess that makes sense.

S.R: Just roll with it…. Let's get on with it.

* * *

Around a week after Issei's human parents returned home, he, Sona, Rias were called upon by the Four Satans. Yet they weren't told anything other than the fact that their presence was requested. Though once they entered the room they were even more confused due to the fact that the former Dragon King Tannin was also waiting for them. Nodding to the teens Tannin turned his attention to the Satans as Sirzechs began to speak.

"There is a situation developing that we'd like you three to handle. Normally we would have one of the Ultimate class deal with it, but there is merit to sending you three instead. Tannin you understand what's going on better than we do so please explain."

"Well my peerage king Mephisto, has asked me to get your aid. For you teens I mean Mephisto Pheles the current chairman for the magical order Grauzauber. Anyway a large number of stray magicians have been attacking his order. Due to their numbers and the fact that a good portion of the stray mages are fairly powerful it quickly became more of a siege than a battle. When Mephisto contacted me they strays had been successful enough in their attacks to trap Mephisto and the higher ranking members inside of a barrier, thus turning it into a slaughter of the weaker members."

"Um, if that's the case why not ask you and the rest of his peerage to attack the mages as well. After all if you can defeat them, or get to the ones maintaining the trap then they can be freed to join you."

"Normally I'd say you have a point but sadly I am the only one of his peerage members not currently trapped along side him. While it's true I could turn the tide enough to let them free, it wouldn't stop the Grauzaubers destruction. But I will be going with you to deal with the situation however. Also my son Bova is currently keeping an eye on the situation and will be joining us. So long as the strays don't have anyone capable of stopping me, with your aid we can save enough of the Grauzauber members to keep the order from collapsing."

Letting Tannin's words in response to Issei's question sink in for a moment Sona turned her head towards her older sister and Issei's father. She was still curious about what he had meant by there being merit to sending them instead of an Ultimate class devil.

"I see. That makes more sense then. But now I have to ask what the merit is to allowing us to deal with this threat instead of sending older and more experienced devils to handle it?"

"The main reason is obviously allowing you three and your peerages to gain more experience. There is also a chance you could make pacts with some of Mephisto's magicians. While it is true that pacts are generally seen as more beneficial to the magician that isn't always the case. As such we feel it may be best for you three to go instead of an older devil."

At that point Serafall butted in to explain since she was the head of diplomatic affairs. She mentioned that normally a magician would make a pact for protection, personal status, or information. Apparently in the magical world having a strong devil backing you made you pretty popular and or wealthy. It also made it easier to buy and sell materials. While that wasn't really new info for Sona it was a good recap since it also explained things to Issei.

But Serafall continued her explaining as she stated the benefits for a devil to make a pact. Devils received the same benefit of buying and selling materials easier. Devils also had discounted prices on buying magic items from the magician the made the pact with. Depending on the magician this sometimes meant that the profits would be shared too. Another positive reason is that so long as an older magician allowed them to maintain their status in whichever order they belonged to, a magician would sometimes become a peerage member for the devil they made a pact with.

The next reason that Serafall gave as a positive reason for a devil to make a pact was the one Sona was sure the older devils were capitalizing on. Magicians share their magic with the devil they make a pact with. This meant that a devil could have access to other forms of magic besides their devil magic. It also meant that if the two specialized in the same type of magic there would be a power boost.

After Serafall finished speaking she let her words sink in with the younger devils. Sona had no problems wrapping her head around it. Rias didn't struggle much to understand either. Issei however had to create an example in his head to see how it made sense. The example he came up with was similar to video game logic. Issei saw it as sharing the experience needed to level a spell or skill up, since a power boost would mean it'd be stronger, similar to how a level 2 ability in a game was stronger/better than a level 1 ability.

Once the teens understood why they were given the task they all agreed it was a wise idea. After the older devils knew they were on board the trio was dismissed to gather their peerages. The Satan's began the next part of their meeting, though Sirzechs left the room to speak to Tannin privately for a moment.

"I don't know if you felt it, but there was a shift in Issei's magic during Serafall's explanation."

"I did feel it. For a moment it felt chaotic, but then it seemed like Ddraig's draconic presence forced it to calm down."

"Yes it did… Please keep an eye on him and let me know if you feel that again while you are out."

"You think he may have something besides his ice and dragon-fire?"

"It's this ever so subtle feeling I have from him. If he does have another power it's still dormant and overpowered by his Sacred Gear and ice magic. But now that he's a devil again it won't stay asleep for long."

"It sounds as if you already know."

"I don't know for sure. This is just a precaution."

"You think he inherited your Power of Destruction."

"It's possible, which is why I'd rather play it safe."

"Alright then. I'll let you know what happens."

With that the two men seperated, Sirzechs returning to work and Tannin using his magic circle to teleport to the Occult Research Club's club room to wait for the younger devils. Rias and her peerage took the least amount of time to gather. After all they didn't have much preparing to do compared to the others. Sona had to set up their excuses from the school for a bit, and Issei had to create a story for his adoptive parents about leaving for a while.

Eventually though they all had gathered. As the oldest and most experienced they put Tannin in charge of the group and set up a battle plan. Sona, Tsubaki, Momo and Reya would be working on disabling the barrier trap that held Mephisto. Shin, Kalawarner, and Zoephiel would be guarding them. Rias and her peerage were to be joined by Koneko to provide a distraction hopefully large enough to keep the strays from noticing Sona's group. Issei and Tannin were going to join up with Bova and the three of them would hunt for the ones in charge of the strays.

 **A few hours later**

Everyone was in position for their assignment. Rias and her team were going to be attacking the strays from a distance. Sona and her group had already gotten inside the Grauzaubers headquarters and found the barrier trap. Issei and Tannin calmly floating in the air with Bova, the three just far enough away to prevent being attacked early. Everything would begin with Rias and her attack.

Since she had to make sure that their distraction was large enough, Rias built up her Power of Destruction. Once she was certain she'd built up enough power she began to compress it forcing it to strengthen itself. Struggling to hold it back Rias raised one hand in front of her, pointed directly at the middle of the large mass of stray magicians. Waiting until she was certain it would affect the most enemies Rias unleashed her newly dubbed **Nova Destruction**. A large beam of her power raced towards the spot she had targeted. Hitting a random enemy the power slowly started to expand, forming a massive sphere of energy. As it grew larger the compressed energy began leaking out spearing through opponents at random drawing them inside the sphere. Eventually the attack couldn't sustain itself any longer and exploded destroying a large chunk of the land.

Whistling in appreciation for the attack Bova raced off eager to join in and left his father and Issei behind.

"I wish he'd learn to restrain himself."

Chuckling at Tannin's words Issei followed the dragon as the two began searching for the ones leading the strays. Issei activated his **Boosted Gear** as they moved knowing they were likely in for a hard or long fight. Rias and Akeno maintained a near constant barrage on the waves of magicians heading their way, Matsuda reflecting their attacks back at them, Motohama absorbing the few that got too close, Kiba and Koneko doing their job of protecting the group with Gasper sparingly using his **Forbidden Balor View** to keep them from being overwhelmed.

It had already been close to two hours of fighting the strays. Rias and her peerage plus Koneko were admirably fighting off the large number of magicians, but they all knew unless something changed they wouldn't be able to hold them off forever. Matsuda was struggling to keep up with his reflecting capabilities. Motohama had already hit his limit for absorbing and was already pushing himself to keep up with Kiba and Koneko. Akeno was starting to feel the strain of using so much of her power. Kiba and Koneko were panting as if they had just finished a long workout.

Sona's group on the other hand still struggled to deal with the barrier. Shortly after they began to work on it they were noticed by some of the Grauzauber members inside the barrier who informed them that the barrier was created and maintained by over a three dozen high powered mages, which meant that even as strong as they were it would take a while to make any progress. Luckily they were able to work on disabling the barrier with few interruptions, the bodyguards handling the occasional enemy with ease. That work became an even larger breeze when a younger magician from the Grauzauber order joined in attacking the stray magicians from behind.

While he was fairly quite he quickly found a place with the group and found himself hoping that when the battle was over he could spend more time getting to know the group. Eventually the fighting slowed down to a trickle, likely due to the fact that they could feel Issei outside getting serious.

"Thanks for your help uh..."

"Loup Garou. Friends call me Rugal though."

At that the group introduced themselves Sona secretly hoping that when all was said and done she could convince him to make a pact with her. She could tell he was hiding some things, and knew that if they made a pact it'd be easier to find out. Rugal on the other hand was questioning himself. Normally he was both quiet and stoic yet he found the stoic facade breaking for this group. He was wishing to be a part of it and couldn't understand why. As time passed though he came to realize that once they got through the day he'd ask not just to make a pact with Sona but to join her peerage too. He was willing to go that far to find out why he was opening up to this group of strangers.

Unknown to him and the rest of the group outside the barrier the ones inside and watching them had already decided to give the okay and push the boy into joining Sona's peerage. They had seen the same thing Rugal did but instead of questioning how and why it happened, they already knew and were happy to give him the chance to make true friends.

Issei however had the hard part. He and Tannin had managed to catch up with Bova after a bit and the three gave up on sneaking around when they realized just how many enemies were still focused on their surroundings instead of just on Rias and her group. At first it was easy just bashing a few heads together but as they went more and more enemies would appear at once making it harder to continue towards the ones in control.

It wasn't until they had come across a small group of Grauzauber magicians that were also trying to get to the ones in charge before there was a lull in the fighting for Issei. Yet he still had **Boosted Gear** active and **Boosting** throughout the small break, hoping that he could build up enough power to end it quickly when they finally found the leaders for the massive stray army they had been dealing with.

* * *

S.R: Ending it there because I can. And because I don't want to spread Issei's fights across three chapters. Yeah that's right there's a lot of action coming up.


	18. Issei The Badass (Fanon Arc Cont)

S.R: This chapter is going to focus on Issei's side of things.

Issei: Yay me?

S.R: Yup. Now let's go!

Reminder below:

"rawr" - speaking

'r _awr_ ' - thoughts/ telepathy

"rawr" - emphasized word

" **rawr** " - beast talking

' _ **rawr**_ ' - beast thinking

* * *

Bova, Tannin and Issei had met up with a small group of about six magicians from the Grauzauber. The were all fairly powerful from what they could sense, but the oldest and probably the one leading the group was heads above the others. Issei had to suppress a snort at his appearance though as it reminded him of a certain wizard from the Lord of The Rings movies.

"We thank you for your assistance, but we cannot just step back and let you handle this."

"I wasn't going to suggest that. Instead I was going to offer to work together. Despite the distraction young Rias caused for us, these strays have noticed us. Rather than try and stealthily move towards the leaders, I say we join up and create chaos to draw their attention to us."

"I see. So we go 'guns blazing' as the kids would say and hope they come to see what the commotion is…. That just might work. Sir Tannin I agree with your thoughts."

"I don't know if you heard about what I tried to pull in the rating game Rias held against Riser Phenex, but if you want us to draw their attention I can try it again. I'll just need you all to stay back."

"Lord Lucifer informed me about your abilities while we were waiting for you, Rias, and Sona to join us."

"Alright then, I've had **Boosted Gear** active since just after Rias started her attack, but I can only handle 50 minutes worth of boosts. Since we aren't concerned about staying hidden I'm not going to try and contain it either. When I used it against Riser this spell could be felt even fifty yards away and that was with only half an hour of **Boosts**. This time I'd say it'll be felt somewhere around ninety yards away."

Issei butted into the conversation and got the okay to use his ice magic. Bova tried to call him out and say there was no way someone as small as Issei could pull it off, his arrogance not allowing him to give Issei credit for something he hadn't yet seemed capable of. But Tannin just bopped his youngest son on the head and told him to be quite and watch.

Leaving the group behind Issei marched forward letting his ice magic flow freely, enhanced by his **Boosted Gear**. Once he was sure he had moved far enough his magic circle appeared on the ground around him covering a good eighty yards of space, as a chill settled in the air. The wind picked up as well, carrying the biting cold out just as far as Issei had predicted. Bova tried to follow Issei to prove him wrong, but standing right at the ninety yard mark had to jump back shuddering as he felt the icy wind.

"Alright ladies and gentleman, I do apologize for this but it's time to get serious… ** **Absolute Zero: Arctic Wasteland**** **."**

The area covered by Issei's magic circle quickly froze over ice rapidly building up layer after layer. This time rather than stopping at three inches think Issei's ice continued to form until it had gotten to be a full foot thick. Only having enough time to smirk at his work Issei was joined very quickly by his companions.

"Nice work Issei. That got their attention alright."

"Yes, I can feel several presences moving this way. They feel a lot stronger than those we had been dealing with before. That was an amazing spell though young one. Was it using your devil magic or an elemental magic?"

"I have a very strong affinity with ice. The way my mama explained it to me, due to that unless I specifically imagine a spell using another element my devil magic will showcase that affinity."

The old mage that had been leading the now allied magicians, nodded his head at Issei's words. Though before anything else could be said the group of people they had felt coming after Issei's spell had made their appearance. They had lined up right on the edge of the icy wasteland Issei created and glared at the group arrogantly daring them to move.

Sharing a look with his father Bova lunged for the group of enemies head tilting back. Tannin following his sons lead did the same thing, both leaning forward just in front of their targets and unleashed intense plumes of fire from their maws. Both dragons had moved so quickly that the group of strays were only able jerk back startled by the attack, though only two of them were able to avoid the fire.

Lashing out with a scaled fist Bova caught one with a hit to the check hard enough to pick the poor fellow off the group and get thrown into his ally. The contact caused the two to get tangled with each other. Unable to untangle themselves fast enough, they were defeated by Tannin who clenched his hands together above his head bringing them down on the two like a hammer.

"That was too easy" Bova scoffed at their enemies not noticing his father shaking his head eyes scanning off in the distance.

"They were not the true leaders, nor were they the ones maintaining the barrier around Mephisto and the others."

"Has our chairman been keeping you updated on their situation?"

"Yes, fortunately thanks to us and young Rias the group that had gone to attempt to destroy the barrier have been largely unimpeded."

Choosing not to explain further Tannin turned and lead the group to continue on their path. Bova eventually took up point with his father the two roasting enemies with their flaming breath unless they had gotten too close in which case they'd lash out with their fists. Issei and the magicians were slinging spells off into the distance like they were grenades. Every so often they would stop and Issei would unleash another **Absolute Zero: Arctic Wasteland** and draw more of the elite enemies to them to be taken down. While it was working to a degree the ones in charge and the ones maintaining the barrier trap around Mephisto had yet to make their appearance which was starting to frustrate Issei.

Letting that rage guide him Issei joined Bova and Tannin in the front burning enemies with their fire breath, which thanks to Ddraig using Issei as a host Issei could do to. The dragons explained it as being host to Ddraig's soul makes the wielder of the Boosted Gear part dragon. Issei was glad to sub in for Tannin, smashing down any stray magicians that got too close with his fists. While he still wasn't a master of any of the styles Issei had learned and mixed together, he was talented enough that Bova was starting to respect his power.

The two were actually bonding as friends pretty easily despite the chaos they were creating as they hunted down the ones responsible for the attack on the Grauzauber order. Tannin had been holding back the entire time though, as he recalled his conversation with Sirzechs about Issei possibly having inherited the Power of Destruction. So far he hadn't felt anything off about Issei's power, even though he kept a very close eye on the boy.

Another hour and a half passed with the group fighting this way. During a short break after a particularly large group got caught up in Issei's Absolute Zero: Arctic Wasteland a communication circle appeared by his ear. By this point Sona's group had been forgotten long enough to bring the barrier down partly allowing a few of the sealed mages to join the fray, but since it was going to take too long Mephisto ordered them to stop and join Rias, however upon joining said redhead's group they were attacked by a stray magician strong enough to fend off all of them. Sona, Rias, Akeno, and Tsubaki were just barely holding their new opponent off as Zoephiel healed the melee fighters.

"Shit, alright I'll explain to Tannin then I'll be on my way Sona!"

"Tannin, they were able to get a few people out of the trap but Mephisto sent them to help Rias. Currently they're just barely holding off an extremely powerful stray."

"Go! Bova go with him just in case."

"Take young Garran with you, his white magic should help your friends recover even faster."

Nodding at their words Issei stepped in the direction he could feel Sona's presence. Bova listening to his father and following Issei's lead. Garran the magician that was to come with them attempted to keep up but couldn't so Bova threw him over his shoulder and they took off.

 **'** ** _ **Hey partner, I know you want to hurry but don't think leaving Bova behind is a good idea. We can fix that.**_** **'**

 **'** _What do you mean we can fix that? I can't do anything besides use_ _Boost_ _right_ _?'_

 **'** ** _ **I had several unique abilities before being sealed. While it's true my hosts can't use them right away like Boost, you can unlock them after a time… There hasn't really been much need for this ability yet so I haven't told you but, besides Boost, you can also use my ability Transfer. You can stock Boosts, and then transfer them to an ally. Unlike boost w**_** ** _ **hich**_** ** _ **is a constantly**_** ** _ **working passive after you activate the Boosted Gear**_** ** _ **you have to**_** ** _ **initiate**_** ** _ **it though. Just say Transfer x with x being however many boosts you are willing to give to a friend and point at them.**_** **'**

Following Ddraig's advice Issei pointed at Bova and Garran since he was slung over Bova's shoulder and said " **Transfer x50** " smirking as Bova speed up considerably. Increasing his pace as well, the two of them sped towards his friends. They arrived just in time too. Bova made a beeline for Zoephiel and set Garran down beside her so he could help with the healing, before taking up a guard stance in front of them since at that point Issei had punched the magician attack his friends square in the face, the impact sending the man spiraling up into the air as Sona fell to the ground free from his grasp.

Issei gently picked her up and set her beside their friends being healed by Zoephiel. Turning back to the man he attacked Issei launched a large pillar of fire from his mouth angry that the man attack his love. While still in the air the man corrected himself and twisted around the fire, attempting to throw fireballs at Issei.

"Bova keep them safe while I deal with this guy!"

"I was going to do that anyway, but you don't get to boss me around!"

Bova was smiling as he responded though, leading the group to think they were just bantering. Issei dodged the fireballs being tossed his way, swiping his arms occasionally to retaliate with spears of ice. After a moment the man had landed, glaring at Issei he spoke.

"I suppose I should tell you my name. It's the least I can do since I'll kill you all. I'm Zul." The man introduced himself as his magic circle appeared in the air behind him. Before anyone could blink he shot towards Issei moving faster than humanly possible. Luckily Issei had been boosting for a while and was able to keep up with out an issue.

"How the hell can you keep up with me when I've reduced the gravity affecting me?" Zul cried as his attempt at uppercutting Issei was stopped. Issei just grinned in response, using his grip on the mans hand to pull him forward headbutting Zul. The force from their heads impacting each other knocked Zul back and had him dazed long enough for Issei to slam his gauntlet covered left fist into his gut.

The fist buried in his gut caused Zul to double over. Capitalizing on the weakness Issei brought his right elbow down on the mans back, causing him to spit out blood. By this time though Zul had snapped out of the daze he was in and grabbed Issei's left fist, swinging him off to the side. Creating a small magic circle in his free hand Zul attempted to dice Issei to pieces with wind. Thanks to his instincts Issei was able to prevent most of the damage by breathing out a small plume of fire. One wind blade did manage to slip past his fire and cut a nice gash down his right arm, but Issei ignored it.

Pulling his arm free from Zul's grasp Issei, pushed off the ground with his right hand, flipping his body in a way that the arc brought his foot down towards Zul's head. It was blocked however but Issei anticipating it flicked his fingers towards Zul launching a few darts made of ice into the mans chest. Shocked by the sudden cold feeling on his chest Zul looked down before ripping the darts out of his chest.

Thanks to that movement Issei was free to stand up and put a bit of distance between the two of them. As he did Issei created a sword with his ice, shocking the few devils still conscious and watching since he and his training partners kept it a secret.

"I'm not as good with a sword as Shin or Kalawarner, but if you want to stay with melee combat it'll give me some extra reach" Issei taunted the man, not giving away the real reason he planned to use the sword if Zul continued to try and fight with his fists. Truthfully the ice the sword was made from was cold enough to instantly cause frostbite to any wound it created. Sadly the chill in the air tipped Zul off to Issei's intent.

"I'm not stupid, you'll freeze me to death with that thing!" Zul shouted before creating a few fireballs and throwing them at the sword, intent on melting it before Issei could use it against him. Knowing his idea wasn't going to work Issei let go of his sword, and lunged under the fire coming his way. He managed to tackle Zul around the waist. Lifting the man over his shoulder Issei leaned back and hammered Zul into the ground letting go as he did so he could spin around.

Issei turned just in time to block a fist that was aimed at his back, slapping the hand away with his right hand he retaliated his left fist connecting with Zul's knee. The force twisted the mans leg awkwardly as he cried out in pain. Not caring about just defeating the man Issei proceeded to brutally beat Zul until he was just a pile of broken bones wrapped in human skin.

"That was for threatening my friends. This is for pissing my off by harming my fiancee" Issei spoke as he pushed his palm against Zul's chest a blade of ice connected to his wrist. The ice pierced through Zul's heart, pulling away Issei turned back to his friends.

Whistling at how brutal Issei had gotten Bova told everyone awake to remind him not to get on Issei's bad side. Grinning sheepishly Issei just told him never harm Sona and he wouldn't have to worry. By this point Zoephiel and Garran had healed everyone though Sona was the only one that wasn't still out from the thrashing they had gotten by Zul.

That didn't last long as Rugal woke up. Noting Issei and Bova he sprang into a defensive posture in front of the recently healed members of Sona's peerage before realizing that they were friendly. He didn't say anything though as he relaxed, leaving Sona to explain about their new friend. Once she was done Issei just turned to him and bowed.

"Thank you for keeping her safe. Sona means everything to me."

Rugal just nodded his head, and stuck his hand out. They shook hands and that was that. Issei and Bova were itching to get back to the fight though they thought it wise to wait until the entire group was awake again before moving out. As they sat there the battle was winding down. Since Sona had managed to free some of the higher ranked members of Grauzauber the ones in charge had finally stepped out onto the battlefield. They could feel new strong enemies falling one by one to either Tannin or the ones Sona freed. Eventually everyone was awake once more.

"I don't know about you all but I can still fight. I'm going back to helping my dad fight these pricks."

"Koneko, Zoephiel, Kalawarner stay here with Sona and Rias. You all earned a rest. I've still got plenty of power and energy so let me handle the rest."

"I'm going too. I know my grandfather sent me with you two because I'm still a bit inexperienced, but there is no way in hell I'm dropping out of this fight now. I may be decent with white magic but my specialty is elemental magic!"

Nodding at Garran's words Issei used his Trasnfer to give Garran and Bova some Boosts once more and the trio took off not waiting for responses from the other devils. Rias shook her head muttering about her nephew possibly becoming a battle junkie. Sona on the other hand pouted as she had hopped Issei was going to be extremely loving and protective over her after Zul's threat. Then she realized he was rushing off into battle and was likely to get hurt, her pout turning into worry for her future husband.

The trio of teens racing back towards the fight were intent on ending the long drawn out battle. Considering he had given some of the boosts away to Bova and Garran when they rushed to Rias and Sona's aid Issei was feeling pretty good about himself. He had said to give 50 **Boosts** to Bova and Garran, but unlike his intent which was for each of them got get 25 **Boosts** worth thinking it divided the boosts between targets, it gave both of them 50 **Boosts**.

Once he realized that Issei was excited. Zul seemed like he was a key player for the stray magicians and he had been defeated without Issei using the full extent of his power. Which meant even if Zul wasn't one of the leaders, or ones maintaining the barrier trap he still had a chance at being strong enough to deal with them. After all he now had ten minutes worth of **Boosts** before hitting his limit once more. Since he hadn't asked Ddraig to start using Boost to replenish the transferred **Boosts** Issei decided to do that as they ran.

Bova was eager to fight. While he had been dealing with a number of enemies himself when they had been with his father before, they weren't really a challenge. He hadn't expended much energy or effort to beat them. He was itching for a good fight, one that made him feel like he was needed for this battle. As much as he liked to fight, if it wasn't on his terms Bova needed to feel like it was necessary for him to do it. That was why he wanted a real fight, not the curb stomping he had been giving out.

Garran however was preparing a few secret weapons to help him get the edge he needed to show his grandfather that he was capable of stepping up to this level. He had already done all the calculations needed for several new spells and rather than possibly loosing them he pulled out his grimiore and recorded them. He also unclasped his most recent creation from it's holster on his back.

Garran was extremely talented for a young magician. He specialized in elemental magic having affinity with ice, lighting, and wind. He also had a fairly decent grasp on the healing and supportive spells from white magic, and had enough talent with alchemy to craft both his grimiore and the staff he unbound from his back. The staff was designed to help him defend himself while casting his spells, but thanks to some help he received while crafting it the runes etched into it granted him an endurance boost so that he could stay in the game as long as needed.

Now that the trio had prepared themselves they burst onto the scene just in time for the ringleaders of the assault on the Grauzauber to show themselves.

"You all have been annoying thorns in our sides. I think it's time we got rid of you."

"Lose the arrogance Bogart, clearly they are worth us taking this seriously."

"Tenmar, is right. They have been fighting off the peons and yet still have the energy to stand before us."

"Well, they have the same numbers we do… Not that it'll mater. Defeat your opponent then gang up on the others."

With that order all hell broke loose.

* * *

S.R: This was fun to write. Almost too fun.

Issei: What's that mean?

S.R: I almost didn't stop. The only reason I did is the fact I didn't want to cram every fight into this chapter.

Issei: I see.

S.R: Also I want to say expect erratic updates people. I don't have as much free time as I did when I was off work for the week, but I do still have some and whenever something pops into my head during that free time I tend to write it down, or at the very least make a note about it for when I do purposefully sit down with my computer.


	19. Ending The Siege (Fanon Arc Finale)

S.R: Normally I'd call my insomnia a bitch, but right now it's actually not that bad. I think it's because I had a lot of sugar and caffeine earlier. Celebrating my nephew's birthday by spending the entire day drinking Pepsi, and eating cake probably wasn't a good move though…

Issei: Eh, it's getting hot out lately you'll burn the fat and energy gained from that off in about a week.

S.R: You can only say that because I'm a walking furnace, it can be 40 degrees (Fahrenheit) out and I'll be wearing sleeveless and shorts and still sweat.

Issei: Fair enough I guess. But aren't you normally the one that tells us to shut up about personal life since the people came here for the story?

S.R: I may or may not have tried to drink some Captain Morgans to pass out earlier. If I did it didn't work and yet I'm not completely sober. But that's if I did.

Issei: So then, let's shut up and let everyone get on with the story…

* * *

 **Last time**

"Well, they have the same numbers we do… Not that it'll mater. Defeat your opponent then gang up on the others."

With that order all hell broke loose.

 **This time**

Issei, Bova, and Garran were simultaneously attacked. Garran swiped his staff in front of him, shattering the icicles that were thrown at him. Bova took a small breath before letting the air out in a puff similar to how someone would blow a candle out effectively canceling the fireball that was flung at him. Issei spun around the slicing winds that were streaking towards him.

Somehow the three boys were in sync with each other Garran stepping back as he shifted his grip on his staff so that he could wield it one handed while the other pulled out the small black leather bound book that acted as his grimiore. Issei and Bova stepped forward, both leaning back before unleashing massive infernos from within their open jaws. All three boys knew that they didn't have the time play around. Rather than letting themselves be seperated and picked off, they stuck together making themselves stronger.

Thanks to his grimiore Garran was chain casting his elemental spells so rapidly that the weather shifted to a malevolent thunder storm which condensed and focused it's lighting strikes to line up timing wise with the streaks of lighting Garran had flowing from his finger tips. This meant that any opponent unlucky enough to be caught by Garran's attack had to suffer twice the damage as they were struck from above as well.

Bova was launching fireballs left and right, not bothering to aim perfectly. Catching on to Garran's plan he used his fire to box enemies in long enough for Garran to strike. Though there were a few times he had to kick away one of the three stray magicians before the could get too close.

Issei like Bova would push back anyone that got too close, but for the most part focused on trying to catch their opponents mid dodge from one of Bova and Garran's attacks. Using his enhanced capabilities to be be precise with his icicle darts, hitting enemies when there was no possible way to dodge.

For anyone watching the trio fight it was very uniform and instinctual. Almost as if the three were one person with how in tune they were. Though it was fairly interesting to see them attempting to burn, freeze, or paralyze the stray magicians they were combating. Unfortunately the mages were older and more experienced, not letting the power from the teens shake them. Despite having an advantage in power, and working so well together their enemies were able to fight back, creating a stalemate.

One of the trio of villains generated long powerful blades of wind, fast enough that unless Issei and Bova purposefully stood in the way with their flame breathing technique there was no way to block them. Another attempted destroy the teens with massive fireballs though he occasionally stopped to infuse his flames into the winds his ally generated forming small fire tornadoes that Issei had to flash freeze in order to stop. The last member made blades of ice, valiantly jumping towards the teens in an effort to slice them up, rending the ground when he missed.

The clashing spells being thrown back and forth were of a high enough level that the terrain around the fight was being reshaped, quickly becoming a barren stretch of land littered with small craters, gashes, and burn marks. The combatants dancing around each other seeking to gain an upper hand.

The chaos of the battle made it hard for anyone to get near, not that there was anyone currently able to do so as both sides allies were locked in struggles only able to glance at the battle for a few short seconds before returning their attention to their own battles.

Eventually the group of six realized that nothing would change if they kept up attacking in the same manner, changing fighting styles. Bova charged in fighting hand to hand with the one that was previously sending fire at him and his two newfound friends. Bova being a dragon had the upper hand in physical might but his enemy stubbornly held his ground.

Garran started a rapid fire contest with the one that had previously been making swords of ice. The two circling each other as their spears of ice clashed between them, neither one able to outpace the other. Issei and the one that generated the strong blasts of wind quickly locked themselves into a fist fight just as fierce as Bova and his opponents.

Sadly Issei left one opening that his wind wielding magician enemy was able to take advantage of, slamming his palm into Issei's chest with a small tornado smashed between the two before unleashing it, and sending Issei flying away. Since he knew the teen was a dangerous foe, he followed after Issei intent on finishing him off and returning to help his companions.

Issei managed to avoid taking any damage when he was finally able to stop flying through the air like an arrow. He had just enough time to stand up properly before getting pulled back into combat. Ducking under the wind coated hand that was aimed at his head, Issei turned and buried his shoulder in the magicians side. Once he made contact Issei lunged, his feet cratering the ground around him as he pushed his weight into the man he was fighting. The forceful shove, startled the man just long enough for Issei to bring his armor clad fist forward in a devastating blow to the face. Growling in anger the man tried to kick Issei in the stomach. Noticing his movement however Issei dodged the limb, ducked low and lashed out with his own, sweeping his enemy off his feet. Jumping away Issei leaned back as he sucked air in, before unleashing a blisteringly hot plume of fire from his mouth.

His enemy flicked his wrists, generating a small gust of air to redirect the flames away earning a chance to stand up. Summoning a raging wind, the man used his hand to guide it into acting like claws as he swiped his hands towards Issei.

' _ **Hey partner I've got an idea. As you know you are part dragon due to being my host. Well you can generate draconic energy and attack with it too. Since you're fully boosted right now there is no way this guy will be able to stop it… I'll guide you through the process.**_ '

' _Alright let's do this Ddraig!_ '

Letting his body move on auto pilot Issei followed Ddraig's instructions finding it surprisingly easy to generate and use the draconic energy. Since it was focused inside the gauntlet that is the **Boosted Gear** Issei caught his enemies fist in his right hand and held the man in place. Opening his left hand the energy seeped out of the **Boosted Gear** and condensed into a sphere in his palm. Once he was sure that the energy was stable enough, Issei grinned unleashing it in the form of a beam that disintegrated everything it touched completely destroying the man.

"That's a pretty cool ability. It needs a name though… Ah, I'll call it **Dragon Shot**!"

In his head Ddraig snorted at the name but told Issei to stick with it since he couldn't come up with anything better. Sighing at the dragon Issei went to speak with him about learning what abilities he could learn and use thanks to being Ddraig's host. Before he could do so he remembered that he was supposed to be helping end the siege on the Grauzauber.

Dashing off towards where he could feel Bova, Garran, Tannin, and the others that were fighting the leaders Issei built up his magic power. He was intent on ending the battle quickly. Only pausing long enough to utter the words **Absolute Zero: Arctic Wasteland**. As he unleashed his spell, his allies that had seen it in use before backed off, managing to pull those that hadn't out of the way just in time. His spell trapped all but one of the leaders of the attack inside layers of ice far quicker than any of his previous uses of the spell, though that might be because the area was already fairly cold from all the ice magic being slung around in the fights.

Since Issei was fully boosted, just the act of letting his massive power been seen for just a moment as he cast the spell was enough to make the remaining stray magician cower in fear. Once Tannin and the other adults returned to his side the battle was officially ended as they forced the remaining man to call off the attack.

 **Two hours later**

Rias, Sona, and Issei's peerages gathered together with Tannin and Bova to receive thanks from Mephisto for saving his order. Mephisto and a few of his older, higher ranked members were there to thank them and make a few offers to the teens.

A well respected witch and mother to Loup Garou also known as Rugal was one of the members there. As was the older man that was Garran's grandfather and leader of the group that Issei, Tannin, and Bova fought alongside. The two of them had seen and heard of how the teenage devils interacted with a certain pair of younger magicians. They had discussed their idea with each other and were about to present it to the group as part of Mephisto's thanks for their aid.

"Sir Mephisto if I may… I have heard a lot and seen a bit of how my son Loup Garou, interacted with miss Sitri's peerage. Not only do I give my permission but I recommend that she be allowed to make him a peerage member and form a pact with him."

"I will second that, and also put forth my grandson Garran for the same reasons though instead of miss Sitri, I recommend him forming a pact with young Issei here."

The two adults spoke, with the old man stepping forward to place a hand on Issei's shoulder as he spoke. Mephisto took their words into consideration for a moment, before nodding and saying that should the two young magicians wish it he would allow them to do so. Garran and Loup were called to the meeting and informed of the adults ideas.

They also received a lot of praise for stepping up and making it through the battle, Garran in particular since he was able to stand up against the leaders of the attack. Loup instantly took up the offer, wanting to find out why he felt so at ease with Sona's peerage and why he was able to bond so quickly with them. Garran took a few minutes to mull it over before nodding as well. He felt that he and Issei would get along fairly well, and after seeing him in action he knew they had a similar elemental affinity which would make it easier to work together.

Since everyone was tired, Issei and Sona decided to wait until they got home to give the two mages their evil pieces so that when they collapsed from exhaustion it would be in a place they could sleep. Agreeing with Tannin to meet up the next day to report to the Four Satans the teens used a giant magic circle to return to Kouh. However Bova tagged along, giving these words as his reason.

"I want to join your peerage too Issei. You're strong enough to earn my respect and to be a great training partner. There's also the fact that you and Garran are so easy to get along with that I'd already call you two my best friends despite only knowing you two for less than 24 hours."

Nodding at Bova's words Issei said they'd wait until tomorrow on that and see what Tannin thinks of the idea, though he filled Bova and Garran in on the home situation. Rias and her peerage left for their respective homes as Sona sent her peerage to their homes arranging for Rugal to stay with Shin temporarily after joining her peerage. Issei however made sure that Garran and Bova had gotten introduced to Koneko, Kalawarner, and Zoephiel since they were going to be teammates as part of his peerage.

With that the teens trudged through the city to Issei's home, introducing the two newest members of his peerage as new 'bodyguards' to his adoptive parents and Rugal as one of Sona's new 'bodyguards' as well. Letting Bova and Garran pick their rooms Issei gave Garran his second Bishop piece before leaving them to settle in. Sona gave Rugal four pawn pieces before letting him rest.

The next day the teens gave their reports to the Four Satans, with Tannin agreeing to Bova's plea to join Issei's peerage. Taking a moment to think Issei decided to give Bova his second rook piece. Once the teens were dismissed, Sirzechs pulled Tannin to the side.

"Did you notice any change in Issei's magic while you were combating the strays for Mephisto?"

"None. Though there were two brief moments where I was unable to pay close enough attention."

"I see…"

"If he has the Power of Destruction, it may well be a while before it awakens and manifests itself, after all with Issei being host to Ddraig, he might not need another power any time soon."

"In other words if Issei has the Power of Destruction, his body is holding it back until he needs it… As if his powers are sentient enough to determine when and if he needs them."

"Stranger things have happened. Though I wouldn't be surprised if Ddraig had something to do with it."

"I wouldn't either… Anyway I've got to get back to the meeting, you are free to leave now."

 **With the teens**

Issei, Sona and Rias had dismissed their peerages to do whatever they wanted as the three chatted about their plans.

"We didn't do too bad, and if it weren't for how long we'd already been fighting I don't think you would have needed to save us Issei."

"We were pretty worn out by then too. It doesn't help that Kalawarner, Shin, and Rugal were caught off guard with Zul's first attack."

"Honestly if it weren't for having the Boosted Gear I'd have had to stop after rescuing you. Thankfully when I use **Boost** I'm able to increase my stamina and endurance too."

"In other words we're still pretty weak…"

"But is training on our own going to help or do we need to asked for more training?"

"Let's hold off on getting help, and work together. I know Shin still trains with you Issei. What if the close combat fighters from Rias's peerage join you guys. Having a different person to work with might help.'

"Then Rias and Akeno can work with you and Tsubaki as well."

"But what about Gasper? As a supportive fighter he doesn't really have anyone to train with."

"Nonsense, Rias. here's the categories we have. Offensive magic, Supportive magic, melee fighters, and balanced fighters. For offensive magic we have you, Sona, Tsubaki, Akeno, and Reya. Supportive magic users are Gasper, Momo, Matsuda,Yura, and Zoephiel. Melee would be Motohama, Kiba, Koneko, Kalawarner, Tomoe, and Shin. Balanced fighters are myself, Garran though he's less melee oriented, Rugal and Bova."

"In other words when we're training we divide into these groups and work together to get stronger."

"Yup. Though I think we should also change it up a bit and make everyone step out of their comfort zone. If we can get everyone to be more balanced then we could pair up however we wanted for training."

 **Somewhere in Kuoh**

"Ah, their back… I wonder where you all went. Not that it matters. Everything is almost in place. Soon this world will be plunged into war."

* * *

S.R: That's that arc done. Now then to explain things. Bova is a rook in this story because I feel it suits him better than being a pawn. Garran is a Bishop because he's a magician so that's fairy simple.

S.R: As for Rugal, well originally he was a rook for Sona. But since I'm making Issei her only rook that can't happen. The only possible pieces left for him were the second knight (which is for someone else), and pawn. So Rugal is a pawn instead of a Rook. Also please note I made him take four pawns. As it is now Sona has one pawn and one knight piece left. Both pieces are already accounted for so her peerage is locked up, no more playing around on the who, just the when.

S.R: I haven't forgotten about Rias and her peerage, it's just the people I have planned for her peerage haven't come around yet. I will spoil one of the planned people by saying Xenovia will be part of Rias's peerage. Other than that you'll have to wait until I get to their arcs to reveal who else is going to be in her peerage.

S.R: Now then here are the current peerage lists:

N/A = Not in the story yet or not yet revealed. X= Uncertain.

Issei's peerage: King- Issei. Queen- N/A. Bishops- Zoephiel, Garran. Rooks- Koneko, Bova. Knights- Kalawarner, N/A. Pawns- N/A.

Issei's current total members counting king: 6. Planned total members counting king: X.

Sona's peerage: King- Sona. Queen- Tsubaki. Bishops- Momo, Reya. Rooks- Issei. Knights- Tomoe, N/A. Pawns- Shin (x2), Yura (x1), Rugal (x4), N/A.

Sona's current total members counting king: 9. Planned total members counting king: 11.

Rias's peerage: King- Rias. Queen- Akeno. Bishops- Gasper, N/A. Rooks-N/A. Knights- Kiba, N/A. Pawns- Matsuda (x4), Motohama (x4).

Rias's current total members counting king: 6. Planned total members counting king: 10.


	20. Excalibur Problems Part 1

S.R: Before we get into the story I do have a few reviews to answer.

Review 1: "This might sound pedantic but I really wish you would change the first chapter chess bit. Being white is actually a significant advantage in chess because you get the initiative. Effectively black is forced to respond to the white player which in chess and reality is a significant advantage. Professional players choose white if given a choice unless they have a specific plan because its quite simply the better side. Its pretty jarring to read supposed genius people play chess and have only basic entry level understanding of the game." -Guest

Answer 1: I don't know about **FunahoMisaki** and their thoughts on the game, but I don't play chess. I never got into it, so I only have a basic understanding of the game. As in all I know is how the pieces move, and that you are supposed to capture the king. I just followed their lead on the chess game. As for changing it, I have to say no. Because of my lack of knowledge on chess I don't think I could improve that section enough for it to seem more realistic for the genius level intelligence that Issei and Sona are supposed to have. Maybe if I ever do learn more about chess I'll reconsider, but for now that is my stance on redoing the chess game.

Review 2: "I actually wished you didn't do this. What is that "fanon" arc? I started to read this since it was a good idea and concept. And I thought it would be super easy if you went along with canon. But eh?" -Laserbr0

Answer 2: I do not have to follow canon. This is fan fiction and this is my fan made story. I am allowed to add my own story arcs and reorder the true story arcs (which will happen later). Besides who's to say I didn't do that arc to set up for something in canon material later on.

Review 3: "just found this remake i was so glad to read this as i loved the story line of this it is a great read i do hope you will keep it up and thank you great story" -darth56

Answer 3: Unless something has changed **FunahoMisaki** is still working on the original. As I pointed out back in the first chapter their response was that they were trying to figure out where to go next with the story. But thanks for the kind words.

S.R: Also it's been a while so it's time to refresh my disclaimer. **Ahem** I DO NOT, I repeat do not own High school DxD. Anyway it's time for the story.

* * *

The devils of Kuoh had altered their training sessions to match what Issei had suggested. After ascertaining everyone's current level Issei, Rugal, and Bova worked together to create a plan. They had decided on a four day cycle. Everyone would take one day to focus on their specialty. Then bringing the groups together there would be a day devoted to magic, both offensive and defensive. Then a day to rest. The last day of the cycle saw everyone come back together focused on physical might. Then they'd revert back to the first day.

On the fifth day after setting up the new training routine, a messenger appeared to the trio of peerage kings. Lord Gremory had finally succeeded in doing something he had been asked shortly after Rias' rating game against Riser. Originally after the match she had approached her father, wanting to have Issei named as the new heir of the Gremory household. However before that conversation had been finished the two devils realized that with time Issei would be strong enough to take over as one of the Four Satans. So in an effort to help prepare him for a leadership role, they instead decided to have him petition the Devils Council to make Issei a joint controller of the Kuoh territory. He had finally succeeded in his lobbying.

However their celebration was cut short. Just as everyone went to congratulate Issei, he received a call from his adoptive mother. His childhood friend Irina had come back to town for a bit and wanted to visit. At that moment his familiar Tawni, had mentally linked with him.

' _ **Master, there are two young women dressed like priestesses in the house.**_ '

' _I'll be there shortly Tawni. Also one moment I have something to say to you and Tiamat so I'm linking her in… Tiamat, Tawni, I almost forgot to thank you for all your hard work. Despite the fact that I haven't really given either of you two a lot of orders you two have really helped with handling our contracts.'_

' _ **All I've done is hand out the contract papers Master, no need to thank me.**_ '

' _ **As your familiars we are linked to you. Since we have your permission it's fairly easy to use your devil magic to make your contracts for you. After all you're pretty busy maintaining your human life.**_ '

' _Still I felt that I needed to thank you two. Anyway let me wrap things up with Rias and Sona, then I'll be home to deal with the two women Tawni._ '

Explaining things to Sona and Rias, Issei quickly left the meeting intent on finding out who the two women dressed like they were from the church were. Upon getting home he saw that one was most definitely his childhood friend Irina, but he didn't know the blue haired girl that was with her.

"Good thing you got home so quickly. You're father is going to be home late because of work, and I just got called in as well. Hopefully you have fun catching up with Irina."

"Alright, bye mom."

After that it was silent. Issei and Irina both awkwardly trying to figure out how to bring up the topic of why things were so different. The blue haired girl wanted to give her friend a chance to figure things out, but quickly lost her patience.

"Will you two just speak already!?"

Both Issei and Irina flinched at the bluenettes words. Taking a breath Issei spoke.

"It's been a while Irina."

"Yeah."

"A lot has happened since you moved away."

"It seems like it."

"Since this is so awkward I'll just give you the summary. I was kidnapped from my cradle as a baby. The one that did it managed to change my genetics to make me a human so I wouldn't be found… It turns out I'm actually the son of the current Lucifer."

At that the blue hair girl's hands moved to the object on her back but Irina stopped her.

"No Xenovia! Remember we're supposed to ask the devils to stay out of our way not attack them!"

The bluenette shrugged Irina's hand off of her and stepped back.

"I'm sorry but why are you supposed to ask us to stay out of your way?"

"You're not one of the devils in charge of the territory so it doesn't matter. Either take us to the two heiresses or I'll cut you down for being in our way."

the now identified Xenovia spoke haughtily, thinking that she'd easily be able to defeat Issei since she didn't feel much power from him. But without prompt the **Boosted Gear** appeared on Issei's hand, and Ddraig started to speak.

" **You foolish girl… Issei shares control of this territory. Just because my host keeps his power contained does not mean he is weak enough for your pathetic shard to best him.** "

"HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT I CARRY?!"

" **Do you not think that I Ddraig, the Red Dragon Emperor wouldn't recognize the aura of a holy blade such as Excalibur?** **Both of you currently possess shards of that blade, but even together you stand no chance. As my host he is part dragon thus weakening the holy power of those blades even further if turned upon him.** "

"ENOUGH. Ddraig, quit egging her on. Besides it was only made official today, there's no way they would know that Sona and I are the ones in charge of this territory now… But if it's something that serious both Rias and Sona need to know anyway."

Quickly using his magic Issei created a communication circle with both his red headed aunt, and fiancee. He told them to get over here so they could find out what the church is doing in our territory. Before his magic circle even disappeared their circles formed on the floor as the two teleported in.

"Now then, all three of the High class devils are here. What business do you have with us?"

Sona commented trying to take control of the situation. Xenovia who was glaring daggers at Issei and Ddraig, didn't speak instead motioning with her hand for Irina to explain. Irina told the trio of devils that the fallen angel Kokabiel had stolen three of the Excalibur fragments, and the church had traced him to Kuoh. They were sent each of them armed with a fragment as well, and tasked with keeping the devils out of their way while they got the fragments back from Kokabiel.

After that a short discussion broke out about either helping them or staying out of their way Issei in favor of working with them, while Irina and Xenovia both were adamant about not getting help from the devils, even going so far as to accuse them of working with Kokabiel.

"I can assure you none of us have anything to do with that warmonger... If it weren't for how your friend here is glaring at my nephew, and how my knight Kiba will take this news I'd offer to help you."

"While I normally wouldn't care one way or the other, your companion is looking at my fiancee like she wants to kill him. I'll stay out of your way, but if she does anything to him, well let's just say you better pray he deals with it before I find out."

"WAIT, FIANCEE?"

"Didn't I tell you I got engaged?"

"NO!"

"Heh, sorry."

At that both Rias and Sona turned to Issei, wondering why he was speaking so casually to the more friendly of the two girls. He formally introduced her as his childhood friend, and the two relaxed slightly, though Sona feeling a bit possessive latched onto his arm purposefully placing her hands so that the two could see the ring.

Eventually though Xenovia had enough of just glaring at Issei.

"There is no possible way that dragon in your **Sacred Gear** is right. I challenge you to a spar. I don't care what happens when I win other than I prove that beast wrong."

"Since it seems suicidal to me for just the two of you to be sent to deal with Kokabiel if I win you have to accept our help."

"Deal."

The two teens stood up, and walked outside, leaving the rest to watch in a mix of confusion and fear. Issei led Xenovia to the school grounds because of the space it would offer for their battle. Despite trying to talk Issei out of it Sona was unable to and left on the sidelines to watch and cheer her love on.

"This is just to the first clean hit you two. There is no need to try and kill each other!" Irina called out hopping that they would listen and she wouldn't end up trying to prevent a war. Thankfully Issei and Xenovia both nodded at her words.

Unwrapping the sword on her back Xenovia revealed the shard she was given to be Excalibur Destruction. Meanwhile Issei just let go of the tight hold he had on his power and activated his **Boosted Gear**.

They circled each other, neither one making any other movement as they studied their opponent. Around the time they had finished the second circle there was an unspoken agreement between them as the charged each other.

Xenovia swung her sword downwards with a heavy two handed strike. Issei dodged to the side, lashing out with his gauntlet clad left hand. Xenovia moving faster than he had anticipated managed to bring her sword guard up in time to block his punch, yet the force made her slide back a few feet.

Not willing to give her an inch Issei followed, swiping his free hand as a magic circle appeared on the backside. Ice generated and wrapped around his hand turning into sharp claws as he swept at the girl. Xenovia using one hand spun her blade quickly slicing the ice and making Issei jump back as the sword was suddenly halted mid spin before thrust towards him.

Stabbing forward once more Xenovia attempted to make Issei back up even further. This time however Issei ducked under the blade lunging forward and knocking the girls legs out from under her. Thanks to his momentum however the two tumbled over each other for a moment, the shock of her back hitting the ground was just enough to loosen her grip on the handle of her Excalibur leaving Xenovia weaponless as they finished tumbling. Issei who was on top quickly jumped up and back as she swung her fists at him, pushing him back until she was able to grab her sword again.

Yet she was unable to do so as instead of blocking or dodging the last punch before she planned to crouch and grab her blade, Issei caught the fist. Using the hold he had on her Issei threw her hand out to the side, shifting her center of balance enough that she would be unable to defend and buried his fist in her side.

"Issei wins!" Irina called out, hopping her friend had calmed down enough and wouldn't push Issei any further. After all she noticed he hadn't even used any boosts, instead only calling out the **Boosted Gear** to use as his weapon. Luckily Xenovia caught on to that as well. Sighing in frustration she gave in and accepted his offer of help in dealing with Kokabiel.

With that Irina stepped forward to explain that Xenovia wielded Excalibur Destruction, and she had Excalibur Mimic. She also pointed out that Kokabiel had stolen Excalibur Rapidly, Nightmare, and Transparency. However before the teens could get any farther, an injured Kiba stumbled into the group as he looked for Rias.

Rias attempted to help him recover while Issei called for Zoephiel and her **Twilight Healing** to make it easier on them. Despite the anger Kiba showed the two Excalibur wielders he accepted the plan though Rias knew he was already plotting to attempt to destroy the Excalibur fragments if he got the chance.

"How'd you get so injured Kiba?"

"I ran into a stray priest. Turns out he was an exorcist and specialized in swords like me. At first we were pretty equal… Then he pulled out a second blade and… I… I couldn't keep up. After that second sword came out I couldn't do anything, it was over in the blink of an eye. All I know is that blade had a holly aura a lot stronger than his light sword he started with."

Xenovia and Irina shared a look at that before nodding.

"It sounds like that stray was one of Kokabiel's people. The second sword sounds like Excalibur Rapidly. Can you tell us what the man looked like?"

"He had silver hair. He was also extremely vulgar."

"Freed Sellzen! He's wanted by the Vatican because he betrayed his oath and began killing indiscriminately. You must be a talent swordsman yourself if you were able to keep up with him before he started using an Excalibur fragment. He was considered a genius swordsman before he was even 13."

Kiba was silent at that. No one present besides Rias knowing why. Unfortunately it was his burden to share so Rias chose to stay silent, only giving her knight a knowing and comforting look. However he didn't speak at all only offering a nod of thanks to Zoephiel once she was done healing him.

"I'll be honest. Despite how strong we all are, I doubt it'll be enough to fight Kokabiel. At best we could stall him."

"You're joking right? Two Excalibur fragments, the **Boosted Gear,** Three high class devils and their peerages and you say we can't beat him?"

"Kokabiel is a former Cadre class Fallen-angel. There is no way he doesn't have the power to back that title."

"So you think a Cadre class enemy is stronger than two Excalibur fragments and a Longinus class Sacred Gear?"

"I think he's far older and more experienced with his power. I never said he'd be able to wipe the floor with us, but I don't think we could just simply overpower him like you think we could."

"Issei's right. Even if together we have more power than Kokabiel it doesn't mean that he can't beat us. As old as he is Kokabiel has to have enough experience to handle all of us and even if he doesn't, who said he'd fight us alone."

As the argument went on Sona secretly stepped away and created a communication circle. Contacting her sister Serafall she explained the situation. Serafall jumped into action saying that she'd mobilize her peerage to deal with Kokabiel but it would take a while for them to gather. She also claimed that she'd pass the word to Azazel since it's his job to determine what Kokabiel's punishment for going rogue is. What she didn't tell Sona was that Sirzechs was in the room with her and that he was also sending his peerage.

Though neither of the two Satan's could immediately aide the teenage devils. Despite their desire to help out the two still had to deal with other matters. They were also hoping that the younger devils could use this situation to grow stronger. After all the teenage devils were strong enough that the two Satan's were sure they'd hold out at least long enough for their peerages to arrive.

"Grayfia's going to be pissed at me."

"Why's that Sirzechs?"

"She's the one member of my peerage I'm not sending... She knows they need to get stronger, but I'm afraid she'll step in too quickly. I don't want them to be harmed. Yet at the same time I know that life and death situations tend to help people push past their limits and grow even stronger either during the situation or after they survive and find themselves determined to improve."

* * *

S.R: I kinda ran out of steam here at the end. I'm actually struggling to keep my eyes open right now. Good thing I have today off because the higher ups wanted the carpets cleaned today.


	21. Excalibur Problems Part 2

S.R: This was actually delayed a bit. I had to reread this arc a few times and tweak a couple things so that it makes more sense. The biggest reason for this is if you recall Sirzechs and Serafall are sending their peerages to watch over the teens. Which means they'll be the ones to step in, but I still had to find a way for Vali to make his appearance.

Issei: So what's going on?

S.R: A surprise. I'll say no more so I don't spoil it.

Issei: So go read the story to find out?

S.R: Yup, let's read!

* * *

After having both Serafall and Sirzechs tell her to hold out until their peerages could help, Sona tuned back into Issei's argument with Xenovia on if they would be able to beat Kokabiel. Signaling for them to stop, she relayed the words of the two Satan's to the group.

Nodding at her words Issei began planning how best to proceed. Since they didn't know Kokabiel's entire plan, they had to find a way to get more information on the subject.

"We need more information about his plan. After all I'm fairly certain he doesn't need the Excalibur fragments to defeat us."

"The only reason I can think is he plans to use it to kill us and blame it on the church, causing the devils and angels to go to war so he can sweep in with his loyal followers and attempt to finish both sides off."

"But that wouldn't happen since the Satan's have known for a while now that he's gone rogue right? They'd know he was the one that did it and target him, not the church."

"True, but maybe he doesn't know that. After all he went rogue after Azazel told his fellow fallen-angels about his intent to call a truce with the devils. There's a possibility that he doesn't know how much Azazel has shared with the Satan's."

Issei, Rias, and Sona debated why Kokabiel would steal the fragments but they couldn't come up with a definitive answer. Sighing Issei declared that it was time to do a bit of recon. He hoped that even if they didn't find Kokabiel himself they'd find the mysterious Freed Sellzen that Irina and Xenovia thought attacked Kiba. After all if they could pin him down then Kokabiel would lose one of his Excalibur fragments and they might be able to ferret out his plans by interrogating Freed.

Kiba stepped forward declaring himself to be part of the search group, but Rias pulled him aside for a moment, telling him if he wanted to join he had to explain to the other his reasoning and hatred for Excalibur. He was about to mouth off and say it was none of their business when she slapped him. After all he was getting a little… narrow minded.

"Yuuto I'm only going to say this once so listen up… Your friends did not save you so that you could throw your life away to avenge them. They did not die for you just so you would hate Excalibur so single mindedly. Or do you believe they were that shallow, shallow enough to drive you to the brink with hatred?"

Her words struck a chord in Kiba, who since Irina's explanation about the possibility of it being an Excalibur fragment that Freed used against him had been seeing nothing but red. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, slowly opening them so that Rias could see his determination to see this through.

"Even so, I've already given my word that I would do this. But I promise you I won't run off on my own."

Rias nodded at his words, and the two rejoined their fellow teenagers. Kiba explained how he came to be part of Rias's peerage. Years ago the church had a secret project running that was supposed to produce artificial holy sword wielders, but this program was focused on creating wielders for Excalibur. Kiba was one of those chosen to be part of the program, enduring harsh training and experiments to be able to use a holy sword. Besides the experiments and harsh training, Kiba and his fellow Holy Sword Project test subjects were treated horribly. They were barely fed, had little to no medical help, and were abused by the ones in charge. Because the project was failing they decided to kill off the test subjects and bury all evidence of their misdoings. Kiba only managed to escape and survive long enough for Rias to find him and resurrect him due to their efforts towards allowing one of them to live.

The two girls from the church were silent, one not wanting to believe the church capable of such an atrocious act. The other silent because of doubt. Not that Kiba's story was true, but doubt that he would stay calm and rational if she told him what she knew of the one in charge of the project.

After everyone had recovered from Kiba's story it was decided that for now only a small group should be sent out to look for clues. Kiba, Irina, and Xenovia all made perfect sense, but because of how impulsive Xenovia was and Kiba could be Issei and Sona went with them making a group of five.

It made more sense that way as Issei was the one to offer the help so he should be part of the group with the two from the church. Sona and Issei would keep an eye on Kiba and hopefully prevent him from blowing his top. And Irina could use the time to study how Issei and Sona interacted to see if there was even a remote chance she could break them up.

Why would she want to do that? Well part of the reason she reacted so loudly when it was revealed that Issei and Sona were engaged was due to her crush on the boy. Though she was still struggling with herself being able to admit her crush to herself, let alone out loud.

Once they were certain their group was ready the quintet of teens set off mostly silent. Mostly, instead of completely because Irina couldn't take the silence and tried to make small talk. She tried to get Issei and Sona to talk about their relationship but the two kept brushing it aside with comments like 'We can talk later, we've got a job to do' or 'Stay focused, there's still a chance of being attacked by Kokabiel.'

However despite the two not revealing anything vocally Irina was able to piece together a bit more about them from their body language and how close they were. Even though they were tense and focused, both of them prepared to react if their group was attacked, the two engaged devils were touching. Ironically the only reason Irina was able to notice how tense and focused they were was due to the fact she studied them carefully.

Especially since they walked hand in hand, arms slightly linked as Sona rested her head on his shoulder. Normally things like that would help mask how tense Issei's muscles were and help hide his alertness from all but the most trained eye as the physical connection between the two would partially block a persons ability to see said muscles and how they bunched together. It would also be due the fact that their embrace would lead to at least a little bit of tension in the muscle anyway as it would be used in a supportive way since Sona's head was on Issei's shoulder.

Since Irina was studying the two so closely her fellow companion from the church also kept an eye on the two, though Xenovia had to suppress a snort at just how much like a couple they were acting. After all she was still smart enough to realize that they were trying to be subtle in their search, making anyone that might see the group think it's just a bunch of teenagers spending time together and hanging out.

As the group had no leads it was decided that Kiba would lead them to the spot he battled Freed at and they'd try to pick up his trail. Surprisingly it worked better than they thought it would. Being as attuned to holy energy as they were Irina and Xenovia were able to register the faint traces from Kiba and Freed's battle. Following the lingering wisps of power the group tracked Freed down. They found him in a nice open clearing in a small forest just outside the city limits. But Freed wasn't alone.

Despite the strong want to confront him immediately Issei and Sona were able to hold the trio of sword wielders back from attacking. At least they were able to prevent them from attacking until after the group had confirmed Kokabiel wasn't part of the group Freed was chatting with. The reason they had failed was Kiba had recognized one of the men Freed was with and he saw nothing but red, followed quickly by Irina.

Even though she had seen enough to tell her that Issei and Sona truly cared for each other, Irina was hoping that she could show off enough for Issei to start falling for her instead. Since Kiba went for an older man with gray hair, Irina went for Freed. Her reason for going after Freed, was that out of the small group they had come across Freed was the largest threat as far as the group knew.

Kiba's target saw Freed's eyes widen when Kiba and Irina burst into the clearing giving the gray haired man just enough time to dodge Kiba's attack. Frowning at how vicious Kiba was being the older man continually dodged, even as he cast a signal flare for Kokabiel to come to their aide.

Freed had seen Irina coming and reacted accordingly, pulling out his Excalibur Rapidly fragment quickly overpowering her and throwing her into a tree. Though Issei and Xenovia wanted to help her, they couldn't both being charged by exorcists wielding swords like Freed. What set these two exorcists apart was the fact that like Freed they were wielding holy swords.

Xenovia had no trouble dealing with the man that attacked her, keeping him at bay with her Excalibur destruction, swinging it in such a heavy handed way as to create blades of air to push him back. Issei called out his **Boosted Gear** but didn't have any time to attack as his opponent suddenly vanished. Letting his instincts guide him Issei was able to protect himself from his hidden enemy, managing to prevent any harm to himself. He lashed out with a quick counter once or twice buy wasn't able to successfully land a hit.

Irina despite the advantage Freed started the battle with was able to come back from being thrown into a tree and hold her own effectively, their fight escalating. The four teens current battling the stray priests working for Kokabiel weren't struggling in their fights per se, but they weren't going to win easily either. Their opponents fighting just hard enough to essentially keep them at bay, or just flat out dodging everything the teens threw their way. Fighting harder and harder Issei, Xenovia, Irina, and Kiba tried to overwhelm their enemies eventually leading their fights to reach a point where Sona had to shield herself after being struck on accident and even then a few stray attacks got through.

Everyone in the clearing froze when a massive power was suddenly felt, turning to look skywards they found a black haired man with red eyes looking down on them. Flaring his power the red eyed man purposefully used it to hold the teens in place. Issei was able to power through the feeling though, and the first thing he did was check on Sona. It hadn't escaped his notice that she had gotten hit by a stray attack earlier.

"Valper, take them and finish preparing for the ritual. I'll deal with the trash here."

Kokabiel's minions followed his order, though right before they got too far Issei flared his power just enough to free his companions. Without turning to look at Kokabiel or the fleeing opponents Issei let his power show as he carefully looked over his Fiancee. Irina couldn't stand not being the one Issei was looking at, nor could she stand that her battle was unfinished. Crying out in anger she charged after Freed, wanting to distract herself from her crush.

Xenovia and Kiba both quickly thought about backing her up, but chose to hold Kokabiel off while Issei wasn't bothering to fight. The two struggled to hold the Cadre class fallen-angel back, both barely surviving his assault long enough for Issei to finish his examination of Sona's injuries.

"Kiba, take Sona and find Zoephiel. After that regroup with Rias. Xenovia I'll keep him busy, attack when you can"

Issei spoke before vanishing, suddenly reappearing right behind Kokabiel with gauntlet clad fist streaking towards the dark haired mans head. Kokabiel blocked it, with an arm while his other hand summoned a spear of light to block Xenovia's sword.

Taking a quick breath Issei leaned back before unleashing a small fireball from his mouth, right into Kokabiel's face. However Kokabiel just brought a set of wings up to block, the only sign of Issei's attack being a few singed feathers. Xenovia tried to attack from Kokabiel's blind spot only to once again be blocked by a spear of light.

"humph… I'll be late if we continue this farce. You only have till midnight anyway. If you think you can defeat me I'll be starting my rampage at your base of operations."

With that Kokabiel disengaged from his fight with Issei and Xenovia before teleporting away. The two shared a look before dashing off to find Irina since she went after Freed. They didn't get very far before being confronted by a silver haired teen who was carrying Irina.

"She's still alive, but I wasn't quick enough to prevent them from taking her Excalibur fragment."

"Who the hell are you?"

"The name's Vali… Azazel sent me. Since he's currently dealing with a legion of Kokabiel's followers, he sent me to represent the Grigori in this situation. Honestly though I was told that unless you couldn't handle the situation that my job is only to bring Kokabiel back to headquarters for punishment."

"So you wouldn't be willing to help defeat Kokabiel then?"

"If I get tired of waiting I'll step in, but until then this is your problem."

"Then why save her?"

"Azazel hopes that this incident could be used as an excuse for a proper meeting between the three factions. Letting her die wouldn't really help that now would it?"

"Fair enough I guess. Since you said you'd step in if or when you got bored I guess you'll be keeping an eye on things, so we'll take our leave now."

With that Issei took Irina from the silver haired boy. Turning, he and Xenovia left to regroup with Rias and Sona. As they moved Issei called his peerage and his two familiars asking for them to join him as he talked strategics with Rias and Sona about how to deal with Kokabiel. Luckily when they arrived Sona had already been seen to by Zoephiel so she could take care of Irina's wounds. Sona had called her peerage together as well, Rias following their lead after hearing that Issei wanted to come up with a plan.

He told his red headed aunt and his fiancee about Vali and mentioned that they could theoretically attempt to whittle Kokabiel down enough for Vali to join in.

"Why would that matter though?"

"You weren't there so you didn't feel his power. Vali is pretty damn tough. At least as tough as me after a few **Boosts**."

" **That's because he's the host of my rival Albion. Of course he'd be strong, Albion wouldn't accept anything else.** "

Ddraig spoke up, with his words leading the group to plan to survive long enough for Vali to join in. After all the White and Red Dragon Emperors together would be quite the challenge.

"I wonder… if you give an evil piece to someone does it increase their power?"

"It should, though now you have me wondering why you ask?"

"Well I just thought of something that might help out even more."

Issei said turning to his fiancee. He looked her in the eyes to see if she could figure out what his idea was. Fortunately her genius level intelligence let her figure his plan. Though she didn't want to specify completely so she only responded with a general statement.

"You are thinking about boosting my powers even further by giving me one of your evil pieces are you?"

"Would it work since you already have a king piece?"

"Don't you remember when we assisted Tannin? He has the queen piece for Mephisto's peerage, but Tannin is also the king of his own peerage."

"So it would work then. Good. Let's boost your power even further by giving you my queen piece then."

The two stepped away from the group to perform the ritual. It also gave them a chance to talk in private.

"My Gorgon's eye is hard to control… Even if your idea works and it becomes strong enough to be used on Kokabiel I have no idea if I could make it happen."

"I have faith that you can do it."

Issei kissed her forehead, as she laid down and allowed him to place his queen piece over her heart. Finishing the spell, Issei was pleased to see it work. Sona was now his queen.

* * *

S.R: I thought about going further, but in the end I decided that this was the perfect place to stop the chapter at. After all I don't want to overwhelm people with things. Now for anyone who saw this coming, or thought that I would do something like this, I give you an internet cookie.


	22. Excalibur Problems (Finale)

S.R: Sorry about the wait for this one. I've been doing some thinking about the peerage situation for Issei. I'm not adding anyone else for a bit, but I have decided that Sona, Koneko, Bova, and Kalawarner are the only canon High School DxD characters to be part of his peerage. Zoephiel was an OC I was asked to make. Garran and the rest of the OCs I have plans for are because I want to expand the mythos. I mean in DxD we don't really get to see much that isn't connected to the three factions, or the more popular Gods.

Issei: That seems like a good idea. Any hints as to what they will be connected to?

S.R: Your second knight will be tied to the Celtic pantheon, two of your pawns will be tied to Chinese pantheon/ Taoism and the other two are non-human races.

Issei: Interesting. Very interesting.

S.R: Quite. Now enough of our rambling it's time for the story.

* * *

Issei had given Sona his queen piece successfully. Happily helping her stand up he pulled her into a hug feeling content. However the two of them being left alone was not to be.

"I know you two are engaged already but can't you keep your hands off each other for five minutes?"

The one who spoke was Rias. Teasing her nephew and his fiance slightly, though her tone conveyed that she wanted to get their attention more than she actually wanted to tease. Catching on to that fact they followed her back to the Student Councils office to continue planning how to deal with Kokabiel.

"Getting back to plotting how to defend ourselves from Kokabiel… We'll need a team maintaining a barrier for sure. But we'll need a combat team for not just Kokabiel but whoever he brings along."

"True. But we don't need to bring everyone, after all there's a chance he may leave some people out of the initial attack to go after the barrier team."

"Issei's right. Kokabiel knows we're going to try to contain the damage. Besides he may think about trying to overwhelm us by having minions attack in waves."

Issei, Sona, and Rias took charge of the planning, earning them a pair of smiles from the shadows that no one noticed. While it's true that Serafall and Sirzechs had both gotten a hold of their peerages and told them to keep an eye on the situation and step in when needed, it's not true that everyone from said peerages were ready and waiting. Only Serafall's knight Peko, and Sirzechs bishop MacGregor Mathers who were able to hide in the shadows were present in Kuoh while the teams prepared.

"I know I shouldn't ask this, but let me join the group inside the barrier. I know that man I attacked. He's the one responsible for my hatred of Excalibur and its fragments."

"Kiba..."

"Rias, I'm not doing this for my former comrades or for myself. I'm doing it because if that man isn't stopped it could happen again. I refuse to let someone else go through what I have..."

"If he is your only target I don't see an issue with it. After all that was Valper Galilei also known as the Genocide Bishop so his words are true."

"Fine. But considering the stress of the situation the moment you finish I want you to leave the barrier."

The two older devils, while staying hidden were pleased to see the trio of peerage kings taking the situation seriously yet remaining calm. Peko and MacGregor were also impressed with how tactical they were being. Though they had to repress the urge to suddenly jump in and scold them for allowing Kiba to be part of the main attack force when there was a chance of hatred making him do something stupid. That was the only thing they heard that made them want to chide the group.

Eventually it was decided that the barrier team would be Tsubaki, Momo, Reya, and Yura. Their protective squad would be Kalawarner, Garran, Shin, Rugal, Tomoe, Matsuda, and Motohama with Irina accompanying them since she didn't have her Excalibur fragment anymore. Aside from Garran, Kalawarner, Rugal, and Tsubaki the devils not going into the barrier to confront Kokabiel were the peerage members that they weren't certain could properly defend themselves from the Cadre class Fallen-angel.

Confronting Kokabiel himself would be Issei and Bova, with Zoephiel acting in support. Rias, Akeno, Koneko, Sona, Kiba, Xenovia, and Gasper were to deal with anyone that Kokabiel brought with him before ganging up on Kokabiel. Because of the severity of the situation Issei had just barely been able to convince Sona to reveal the main reason he gave her a power boost by making her the queen of his peerage.

Peko, and MacGregor who were watching in secret were shocked upon hearing the trump card that Sona had hidden until this point. Both quickly revising the thought that Issei was the only true threat to Kokabiel in the group. Though it was a small struggle to not include Gasper as a threat to Kokabiel since despite his massively improved control over his abilities, he still hadn't been able to increase the amount of time that his ability held affect. Ten minutes would be overkill for a lot considering the line up that was chosen to deal with Kokabiel, but he was a Cadre class for a reason. Not to mention he was a survivor of the war between the angels, fallen-angels, and devils.

Even though Gasper was strong enough to be able to temporarily freeze Kokabiel in time the group would have to seriously injury the fallen. While possible, it was doubtful that they'd be able to injury him enough to force Kokabiel to stand down in that time. Unlike with Sona who's Gorgon Eye ability which the only escape is if you are overwhelmingly stronger than her. If she could purposefully activate it and affect Kokabiel it would be all over since the only escape would be if she willingly left him free.

While the two in the shadows revised their opinions on the chances of them having to step in and protect the younger devils the rest of the group reacted similarly in shock. Except for Issei since he had already known. Though Matsuda and Motohama recovered quickly upon recalling when they found out that Sona was a devil she had mentioned having abilities with her eyes without actually mentioning what they were.

After a while the group diverted into their teams and set out to be in position by midnight. The two older devils decided to watch the happenings from a distance with their fellow peerage members who were starting to show up. Reminding the group they were only to step in to prevent Kokabiel from killing the younger devils the two were confident they wouldn't have to step in until Kokabiel had been subdued, though neither Peko or MacGregor mentioned their thoughts to the rest.

Sona having a communication circle by her ear was ready to relay the order to create a barrier to Tsubaki, when Kokabiel appeared. Having expected that to happen he did nothing even as the barrier was fully raised.

"So the brats think they can handle this… Valper you know what you're supposed to do. Freed you'll have to make due with a regular light sword till he's done. You two priests are to defend Valper till he can hand Freed the combined Excalibur fragments. As for you devils, how about I let you play with my new pets."

Kokabiel was unsurprised to be confronted immediately when he appeared in the air over the open field that the students at Kuoh Academy used for outdoor activities. Since he had given a warning to Issei in an attempt to play fair, he knew they'd be ready and just barked out his orders the second he appeared. As he wrapped up his orders he used his teleportation ability to bring in a few puppies, that were bred from the Greek God Hades pet Cerberus.

While the young three headed dogs were not as large or as powerful as their parent they were certainly a dangerous foe to underestimate. Because of that Issei had Bova step in and help the others deal with them which was fine since he had **Boosted Gear** active to help make up for the difference in power. Luckily Kokabiel was showing patience and not doing anything so Issei just stood at the ready.

Xenovia and Kiba were viciously attacking Freed and his fellow strays as they tried to prevent Valper from combining the Excalibur fragments. Though due to not holding back the destructive power of her Excalibur Destruction, they were fairing much better than the others having eliminated one of the three stray priests protecting Valper.

"Tell me something Kokabiel. You want to kill us and spark up another war right? Then why sit here and do nothing."

"Other than the fact you're the current Red Dragon Emperor I have no idea why you think you're as big of a target as the two little sisters of the current Satans… However now I ask you. Why should I do anything now when my minions are clearly slowing your allies down. Why attack now when it'd be easier to wipe you out when you are tired?"

"Fair point, though I wonder just how worn out they actually are."

As Issei spoke Xenovia and Kiba had managed to cut their opponents down to just Freed, though Valper had succeeded in combining the Excalibur fragments and handed the new sword over to Freed. Luckily the two were skilled enough to keep the battle equal. Sona, Rias, Akeno, Gasper, Bova, and Koneko had cut down the number of Cerberus pups quite handily currently split up into three groups of two for the last three pups.

"I see… I underestimated their power, but it doesn't matter."

Meanwhile Kiba, Xenovia, Freed, and Valper were treated to a very special sight. Valper having declared a light-attributed crystal that he used in the process of fusing the Excalibur fragments was worthless, had tossed it away. But having made it using the spirits of those he killed in the Holy Sword Project he was shocked when it reacted with Kiba. A rather powerful glow drew the eyes of everyone within the barrier to the fight between the swordsmen. When it died down there was a large group of ghostly figures gathering around Kiba. Declaring themselves Kiba's friends and granting him their aide in freeing themselves, The power still contained within the light-attribute crystal was merged with Kiba's own.

His power shifting in feeling, jumped up until he suddenly had an epiphany. Pulling some of his power to his hand Kiba used his **Sword Birth** sacred gear to create a special sword. The sword in his hand was both a Demonic sword and a Holy sword. The two energies combined and worked together seamlessly. For everyone but Kokabiel it was a shock to see, though no one noticed just yet.

Freed quickly overcame his shock and attempted to overwhelm Kiba with his fused Excalibur, but not only did Kiba's new sword block the Excalibur fragments it was sturdy enough that Freed actually recoiled from the blade.

"Xenovia I've got this handled. Please go help the others."

With newfound confidence and power Kiba started dueling with Freed once more, the two ferociously attacking each other. Despite having four fragments of Excalibur fused together Freed was unable to do little more than attempt to defend himself from Kiba, slowly becoming more and more deranged as he lost ground. Eventually gaining the upper hand Kiba with his new sword was able to break Freed's before standing in front of him, the tip of his sword at Freed's throat.

"You can continue howling to the Grim Reaper in Hell."

With that Freed was defeated, strangely enough at the exact time as the last of the Cerberus pups that Kokabiel had brought for the devils to deal with. However Kokabiel was indifferent, still thinking he was going to be successful. Valper Galilei who had watched Kiba with interest after the light-attribute crystal reacted was able to piece together why. His words shocking the young devils to their core.

"A sword with both Demonic and Holy power… It should be impossible for that blade to exist, yet there it is. The only possible explanation… Yes, that is the only way. Not only must the original Satans have died in the Great War, God must have as well."

Sighing Kokabiel moved behind Valper. Thrusting forward with a spear of light, Kokabiel pierced through Valper Galilei's heart.

"That is true, God did indeed die in that war… For you to deduce that, Valper. You were too smart for your own good."

Recovering from his shock Issei shock his head, before rallying the others with his words.

"I don't know if I'd trust anything you say Kokabiel, but even if it is true we still have to stop you. Ddraig, we've got work to do. I'm counting on you."

" **Right. Let's go partner!"**

Issei having spent the entire time Kokabiel had been present boosting was lucky. He had roughly twenty five minutes worth of **Boosts** already in use increasing his power and speed to match Kokabiel. That lunge drew everyone out of their stupor as they joined in the assault. Yet Kokabiel weathered their attacks with ease slowly pushing them back and knocking them down. Laughing maniacally the fallen-angel fought back easily over powering the weaker members of the team.

"Even with that fancy new power you still don't stack up compared to your friends. Yet together you all still couldn't win."

Kokabiel taunted as he threw a small spear of light at Kiba. It pierced his side and was deep enough to keep him from getting back into the fight. Zoephiel dropping out as well to heal him. Though the second she fell back both Koneko and Akeno were tossed aside as well. That left Issei, Sona, Rias, Bova, and Gasper still in the fight.

"Oh come on now, quit hiding your power and use it Dhampir boy!"

"How do you know?!"

"I can feel it. Get serious or die!"

Flapping his wings Kokabiel sent a storm of razor sharp feathers at Gasper, hoping with how timid the boy was he'd use his **Forbidden Balor View** and accidentally freeze his friends. It would make tormenting the teens so much more fun. But knowing that was his plan Issei and Bova both burned the feathers to a crisp with the torrential infernos that were their fire breathing abilities.

Sharing a look with Sona and Rias, Issei had to hide a smirk as things had so far been going according to their plan. While the entire group had been attacking Kokabiel, Issei and Bova had been setting up a trap for the Cadre class fallen-angel. Bova had subtly been using his fire manipulation capabilities to create a heated air bubble around Kokabiel while Issei charged every air particle within said bubble with his demonic energy.

Since devil magic is all about imagination and visualizing things, he had to specifically think about what he wanted to do. The reason was if he didn't his natural ice affinity would take affect and negate Bova's work. Since his look was the signal Rias and Sona backed off, as Issei and Bova went full throttle.

The air around Kokabiel became super heated as Issei activated his demonic energy creating a spark, that ignited the extremely hot air. The following volatile interaction was enough to turn the bubble into a cocoon of plasma. But they knew it wouldn't take Kokabiel out. After a moment the they were able to see that Kokabiel had reacted quick enough to shield himself using his wings, which were patchy as the plasma disintegrated the majority of his feathers, and melted chunks of the skill underneath. Lighting flapping them to make sure he still could use them and still had feeling in them, he was frozen in time as Gasper glared at him with **Forbidden Balor View** was active.

"Now for phase 2. Injure him enough that his magic is diverted to healing him. That way all we have to deal with is his physical capabilities. Ready boys?"

Nodding at Rias, Issei and Bova moved away from the fallen-angel. Channeling his full might Bova put his full strength into his hands as he held them together and brought them down in a hammering blow on Kokabiel's back between his wings. The force shotgunned Kokabiel towards the ground. Before he made contact though Issei used his magic to generate a series of small yet dangerously sharp spears of ice form on the ground just beneath Kokabiel, thus piercing and shredding the fallen-angel as he fell onto them. Not letting up on their assault Sona used her control over water to make a titanic serpent, which impacted Kokabiel and drove him into a deep crater which rapidly filled up as the torrent of water lost its structure.

While all of this was happening Rias, pulled her **Power of Destruction** to her hand generating a baseball sized ball of power. Since the group wasn't fully sure this plan was going to work she chose to conserve some power and didn't bother to compress the orb of power in her hand. Throwing it at Kokabiel the group watched as her new technique **Grenade of Ruin** hit the fallen-angel in the back before rapidly expanding though it was only able of growing to match the size of the crater he was in. The attack did unleash a massive shock wave that doubled the size of the crater before diminishing however.

As the teens began to see Kokabiel clearly again they realized that their ten minutes were up. The reason they noticed was Kokabiel had started to move his wings again. Despite the damage the had caused he was able to move fluidly still. Standing up and giving himself a once over he noted his wings were full of holes and partially shredded on top of the burns they had previously suffered. His back was stiff, the shock from Bova's attack having numbed the nerves and forced him to stand ramrod straight.

Kokabiel also noticed that his chest was extremely sore and starting to bruise, and his skin was peeled in places from Rias's attack. Turning his attention inward he noted Sona's water serpent hit with enough force to break a few ribs, with one of broken ones slightly poking into his right lung. Concluding to himself that he was pretty banged up, Kokabiel used his power to reinforce his body and start doing a little bit of mending. Deciding to stall until his ribs were fixed Kokabiel gave a condescending smile towards the teens. Unknown to him, Issei was going to do the same.

"Not bad, not bad at all… If you had done more internal damage you might have actually killed me. Though that was a fairly weak attack Gremory."

"You know what happened?"

"Of course I do! Just because I was frozen in time doesn't mean I couldn't see what was happening."

"Huh, didn't know Gasper's **Forbidden Balor View** couldn't prevent a person from noticing what happened while they were frozen in time."

"You're too strong for his Sacred Gear to work on you Issei, that's why you didn't know that."

"O-ho, you say it has no effect on the Red Dragon Emperor? I take back what I said earlier. You're an even bigger threat than the two heiresses… But it doesn't matter to me. Why don't you and Ddraig join me? As strong as you are we could defeat any other faction. You'd have everything you ever wanted, all you have to do is stand down and let me kill those two."

"Fuck off. Like hell I will let you kill my aunt, or my fiancée."

" **I am with my partner on this one. Threatening another persons lover is not something I can abide by."**

"Aunt? Fiancée? Why didn't any of the peons I had watching you report that info to me?"

"Who knows? But let me tell you something Kokabiel. For threatening to kill my fiancée Sona, you've really pissed me off. It's a good thing I haven't stopped **Boosting** yet. Sona you know what to do. Rias you're my support I'm counting on you… Bova defend them."

Gasper having drained himself to freeze Kokabiel in time as long as he did, just grabbed Kiba and Xenovia before leaving the barrier as Issei finished speaking. Issei charged Kokabiel who was smiling. He did delay the battle long enough to recover not just his broken ribs and lung, but the majority of the damage on his body. At times like this he couldn't help but be thankful for a few of his innate abilities from before he fell, such as his rapid healing. His smirk was short lived however when Issei brutally slammed into him.

Thanks to the **Boosts** Issei was now not just equal to Kokabiel but faster and stronger. While Kokabiel knew he still had a decent chance to win, it was only if he could take the others out. Even though it was extremely painful he used his wings to blow Issei away, even if it was only long enough to overpower the others.

He didn't expect to see Sona's eyes glowing golden as she glared at him. Kokabiel also didn't expect to suddenly feel his senses dull and his movements slow. It was such a shock that he didn't even notice when Bova hit him square in the jaw. Not knowing what caused the change Kokabiel made a few spears of light and threw them towards the teens but by that point Issei was back.

Seeing the situation on hand Issei used his gauntlet covered left hand to smash the light spears. Nodding to Bova they traded places as Issei unleashed a torrent of fists on the fallen-angel. Despite his handicap, the experience he had was enough to keep it from being a one sided beat down. But he was starting to fail. His lowered senses and slower speed meant his reflexes were not good enough to keep up. Kokabiel however was still extremely dangerous, as he knew he couldn't be careless and unleashed his full power, using his magic to attack Rias, Sona, and Bova who while doing fine were starting to wear down. Catching onto his plan Issei forced Kokabiel to the ground before disengaging the fight for a moment.

"You guys aren't going to be able to keep up much longer. Bova get them out of here."

"You sure boss?"

"Yeah. I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve."

" **Not to mention I can sense my rival's host is nearby. If we drag this out just a little more, he may get bored and join in."**

"Aright. Rias, Sona let's go."

"No, I'm not leaving him."

"I love fighting just as much as the next guy, but this isn't a fight for us. We can't keep up anymore and will just get in the way."

"Sona, have some faith in me. Have I let you down yet?"

With that she conceded and left the barrier with Bova and Rias. Once they had gone Issei turned to Kokabiel who had chosen to recover a bit more while they talked. Knowing that he couldn't do anything to change the situation just yet the fallen-angel had started thinking about how to get away and try again later.

He was unable to do so as Issei ferociously and viciously started attacking again. Even with Sona no longer being close he was still affected by her Gorgon's eye and barely able to hold his own. Noticing that he frowned, wondering why her ability was still active. He was also curious as to what her ability was since he had no info on her magic beside the heiress's obvious talent with water. While he was distracted by his thoughts Issei had enough and was trying to finish it. Building up his draconic energy Issei pointed the palm of his **Boosted Gear** at Kokabiel before unleashing his **Dragon Shot** which was much, much stronger compared to the last one he had used.

Unfortunately Issei was almost at his limit endurance wise. Something Kokabiel noticed and tried to capitalize on. Yet before he could even move a figure in white armor forced him to the ground.

"You didn't do too bad. Gotta get stronger if you want to fight me evenly though."

"I was wondering when you'd show up Vali."

"As much as I love a fight I suggest you stop now Kokabiel. He may be the Red Dragon Emperor but Azazel wants me to take you back and sadly orders take priority. You want to continue it'll be against both of us."

While Vali spoke the others, who at this point could tell the fight was over as they couldn't feel the clash anymore disabled the barrier and came to see what happened. But before anyone could say anything Serafall and Sirzechs themselves appeared with Sirzechs bishop MacGregor along with his queen and wife Grayfia. Serafall explained that they had sent their peerages in to keep an eye on things and step in when needed but it they never got the chance and the moment Vali appeared she and Sirzechs were called by MacGregor who quickly filled them Vali for making Kokabiel stand down, Sirzechs ordered MacGregor to seal the fallen-angel and make it easier for Vali to take him to Azazel for punishment. The entire time that was going on Grayfia was checking over the teens, especial Issei and sneaking glares at her husband for keeping her out of the loop. The only reason she was there now is that she was standing behind Sirzechs when the Satans were called by MacGregor and she refused to stay behind.

Once everyone had calmed down Vali left for the Grigori. Serafall and her peerage left to file a report on the situation since she was the one that handled foreign affairs. Sirzechs gave the teens an order to go home and rest and dragged his wife away from their oldest son upon seeing that he just worn out from the fight.

* * *

S.R: Hey look it's a longer chapter than normal. Anyway, that ends the Kokabiel arc. Next up will of course be the three Factions meeting. See ya'll then.


	23. Faction Meeting Night One

S.R: Okay so before we begin I have a few things to say (Enlarged to draw attention. Please read everything).

1\. For those of you that don't follow me and read my other stories I have discontinued my story titled

 **The** **Salamander's Story**.

2\. After I post this I will be working on a new story that will hopefully be up soon.

3\. Check out the chapter labeled "NOTICE #2" in **The** **Salamander's Story** and tell me what you think of spacing things that way from now on (because like the dumb-ass I am, I only recently noticed that Fanfictions Doesn't keep Double Spacing unless you do it yourself in the Document Manager). If you guys like it I'll redo this story with that format.

4\. Depending on how things work out with how things have been in my personal life I may finally be able to create an update schedule for everything, so be prepared for the possibility of regular updates (If it works out it'll be one update every two weeks).

5\. This chapter is going to be weird. I'm not exactly following canon with it (I.E. Parents Day then Faction Meeting). Just read and if you have questions leave a review and I'll try to answer them as smoothly as possible.

S.R: Hopefully people read these and don't skip ahead to the story….

* * *

It had been a few days since the ordeal with Kokabiel. A lot of interesting things had happened for our group of young demons. Those that were inside the barrier and that heard Kokabiel say that God was dead had agreed to keep silent about it in front of the one exorcist that wasn't in the thick of it. Irina knew that something had happened though since Xenovia wasn't as over zealous as normal, and seemed to be getting pretty friendly with Rias and her peerage.

Xenovia and Irina had made their report to the church via a phone call, and had just finished waiting for the day they were scheduled to return to Italy. But only Irina returned, as Xenovia decided she couldn't continue working for the church with the same energy as before. Looking back on her time as an exorcist she realized that things hadn't felt right. Deciding that if Kokabiel was right that God had perished, Xenovia told her newfound friends that she wouldn't be able to blindly obey the church as she had before, which would have eventually lead to her being excommunicated. Though she secretly feared it would happen anyway if the church found out she heard Kokabiel's words.

Since she had no where else to go the devils in Kuoh extended an invitation to stay with them. Because she had been opening up to Rias and Akeno she stayed with them, eventually convincing Rias to cave in and reincarnate her as a devil. When all was said and done she had become Rias's second knight. Xenovia had no trouble acclimating to being a devil and quickly cemented herself as a melee combatant for the group.

Serafall and Sirzechs had been keeping them informed on the situation with the Grigori, and thus the teens were unsurprised to learn that a meeting had been called between the devils, angels, and fallen-angels. Azazel had told Serafall that he called for the meeting to publicly apologize for Kokabiel's actions, as well as to announce what Kokabiel would be punished with. But Sona and Issei suspected Azazel was merely using that as an excuse and that his real goal was to establish a proper peace between the three factions.

As the appointed day for the meeting grew closer the teenage devils were told that only Serafall and Sirzechs would be present at the meeting since Ajuka and Falbium were needed to manage the day to day aspect of leading the Underworld. The two older devils revealed that as what was very nearly ground zero for another war between the factions, Kuoh would be where the meeting was held. As such the older devils declared that the three teenage kings would have their peerages acting as the devils portion of the security while the kings themselves gave their account of what happened with Kokabiel.

Eventually the day of the meeting came. While the teenage peerage kings weren't sure who was coming from the Angel's faction, and they didn't know who Azazel's second in command for the meeting was they did learn who was brought as security. Heaven had of course brought Irina, Dulio Gesualdo the strongest exorcist, and as a pleasant surprise for Issei the second figure acting as a guard in the room was Grizelda Quarta, the woman who taught Issei about the supernatural. As for Azazel and his companion their protectors were Vali who Issei recognized and a man named Tobio Ikuse.

As for the teens, their peerages were asked to guard the room from the outside though Xenovia was currently with the three kings as she technically had to give the full report to heaven on why she left. Once all the guards where in place in the room the six leaders that had been chosen to attend the meeting entered to reveal Micheal and Gabriel representing the angels, Azazel and Baraqiel for the fallen-angels, and of course Serafall and Sirzechs for the devils.

Once they were seated Azazel kicked the meeting off by apologizing for Kokabiel's actions, though he sounded very insincere. He did however explain that Kokabiel had been sentenced to be frozen in the Cocytus. Micheal and Gabriel sighed sadly at that but neither argued it, while Sirzechs and Serafall smiled both trying to keep a lid on their overprotective nature.

"Now then, you all know now about his punishment, and I explained why he went rogue. While I don't have an accurate account for what he had done before targeting the Excalibur fragments We do have some people who can report exactly what happened afterwords."

With Azazel's speech finished the teens reported what had happened leading up to Valper Galilei's realization, before going silent and allowing Xenovia to speak since it was her reason for leaving the church.

"After Kiba achieved his Balance Breaker Valper had an epiphany of sorts. He claimed the only way Kiba's Balance Breaker could be possible was if God had died just as the original Satan's had. Once he finished speaking Kokabiel killed him stating 'That is true, God did indeed die in that war… For you to deduce that, Valper. You were too smart for your own good.' All of us present were shocked, but Issei shook it off because we had no way of knowing if he was being truthful. Thanks to Issei's words we all recovered our wits and procceeded to fight."

"But Kokabiel was both strong enough and skilled enough to fend our group off slowly whittling our numbers down until it was just Sona, Issei, his rook Bova, my Bishop Gasper, and myself. At that point we tried to use Gasper's Sacred Gear **Forbidden Balor View** to our advantage but even with it's aid we weren't able to finish him off."

"Once Kokabiel recovered from being frozen in time it was Issei on offense, Rias was acting as a support, and Bova defending her and I while I tried to use one of my hidden aces. It wasn't able to fully take effect, but it dulled his abilities and reactions enough to allow Issei to fight him one on one. At that point Issei was the only one with the energy to keep going so he had Bova get everyone out of the barrier."

"Thanks to Sona's trump card I had a clear advantage over Kokabiel and I capitalized on it, but even with Ddraig's help my stamina wasn't up to the task of finishing him off. Luckily for me one Kokabiel noticed that I was starting to loose ground, Vali came in. Since he was in perfect condition, and Kokabiel was extremely roughed up at that point was unable to fend off Vali and was taken back to the Grigori for punishment."

As the teens finished their report the room was silent. Eventually with a sigh Micheal started to speak.

"Sadly Kokabiel was correct. Father did indeed fall in the war. Because the faith in the church would plummet massively if it were exposed we decided to keep it a secret… Xenovia I bear you no ill will as you have willingly chosen this yes?"

"That is correct Lord Micheal."

"Then all I have to say is I wish you happiness."

With that Xenovia was dismissed to join the others as guards.

Issei, Sona, and Rias moved behind Serafall and Sirzechs and the meeting continued much how Issei had predicted with Azazel pushing for a true peace between the three factions. Micheal and Gabriel agreed quite readily, and while Sirzechs and Serafall didn't have a problem with it they weren't willing to go along with it until Azazel explained why he was working so hard for peace.

"I am researching the Sacred Gears. As a researcher I have to know how they work, how God made them, how to safely disable or extract them, I have to know everything. But if I were to start gathering Sacred Gear wielders to study you would fear that I was gearing up for war correct? That's why I want this peace. Also even if you hadn't asked for my reasoning I would tell you, simply so that I could do my work in peace."

"I have no problems with that, I mean you've been very open with your intentions even before this meeting. So here is my suggestion. Because we all need to fill in the other leaders, let's call the meeting over for now, and spend a few days drafting a proper peace treaty."

"You're only suggesting it so that you can stay in town for a few days since Kuoh Academy's Parents Day is later this week."

"I can't deny that."

"We don't have any problems with taking a few days for this. After all it will take some work to make something that can appease all three factions."

With that the meeting dissolved. Issei and Sona were approached by Micheal who had heard about their engagement and congratulated them, before asking if they would be willingly to meet again so he could give them a wedding gift. While that was going on Irina approached Xenovia and greeted her sadly. Since learning the truth of God's death Irina was more dedicated to the church, and as such she knew unless she was sent to Kuoh she wouldn't see her friend now that Xenovia was a devil. Vali and Tobio quickly followed Azazel out of the room, while Baraqiel stayed approaching Rias slowly.

Baraqiel thanked the red headed teen for taking care of his daughter Akeno. He also asked her to talk to Akeno about meeting with him as he wanted to apologize for not being there when her mother died. Serafall left the room giddily as she mentally prepared to embarrass her little sister during the Parent's Day. Sirzechs however approached Grizelda Quarta.

"I feel the need to thank you. If it weren't for you teaching Issei about his powers he might not have attracted Sona's attention."

"I'm sorry but why thank me for that?"

"Because it was thanks to their meeting that my wife and I were able to find our long lost son… You see when he was a babe Issei was kidnapped from his crib. His kidnapper was able to alter Issei's genetics so that we couldn't find him."

"Wait, your saying Issei is supposed to be a devil?"

"Yes. We still aren't sure how but his kidnapper was able mask or erase Issei's devil blood."

"I see. Well I'm glad I could help reunite you. He's a good kid. When I was called to Italy I was worried about him growing up, but it seems like he's in good hands."

"Still I want to thank you. Since everyone will be in town for a few days while we work on the peace treaty, I'd like invite you to dinner with the family."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course… You know when he told us about your teaching him about his power he called you his aunt. Besides Iseki and Emiko considered you his aunt as well and I'm sure they'd love to catch up with you."

"I'd like to reminisce with them, so I'll accept your offer."

"Good. You still know the Hyoudou address right?"

"Yes."

"Well then how about tomorrow night you come over and join the full dinner."

"What do you mean full dinner?"

"Well Issei has taken to the situation better than most would expect. He sees Iseki and I both as his father, just like he does Grayfia and Emiko as his mother. Rather than deprive him of that he spends time with both of us. But one night a week both families get together for dinner."

Eventually the talk came to an end, though by that point Issei and Sona had joined in so he could introduce the two. Naturally he was excited that Grizelda had been invited to dinner and couldn't wait to tell his adoptive parents. However by the time everything was said and done it was too late, so he went to bed, determined to mention Grizelda to his adoptive parents at breakfast in the morning.

* * *

S.R: Now to explain how I changed things. The Faction Meeting is going to take a few days. I did it this way because it feels more natural than just one night. It also let's certain characters interact more than they did canon wise. And of course the main reason. I had the meeting typed up till just before the suggestion for ending it for the night. At that point I realized I forgot the Parents day. I decided "Screw It I'm not deleting this or redoing it. I'm going to make it work."

S.R: Now then here are the current peerage lists:

N/A = Not in the story yet or not yet revealed.

Issei's peerage: King- Issei. Queen- Sona. Bishops- Zoephiel, Garran. Rooks- Koneko, Bova. Knights- Kalawarner, N/A. Pawns- N/A.

Issei's current total members counting king: 6. Planned total members counting king: 12.

Sona's peerage: King- Sona. Queen- Tsubaki. Bishops- Momo, Reya. Rooks- Issei. Knights- Tomoe, N/A. Pawns- Shin (x2), Yura (x1), Rugal (x4), N/A.

Sona's current total members counting king: 9. Planned total members counting king: 11.

Rias's peerage: King- Rias. Queen- Akeno. Bishops- Gasper, N/A. Rooks-N/A. Knights- Kiba, Xenovia. Pawns- Matsuda (x4), Motohama (x4).

Rias's current total members counting king: 6. Planned total members counting king: 10.


	24. School Day and Family Dinner Revelations

S.R: Hey folks it's time for the next part of the meeting between the Three Factions!

Issei: Yay?

S.R: No… Well yes, but you shouldn't be one of the people that are saying yay. The reason for that is most of this chapter will be attempts to embarrass you. Now to answer a few reviews:

Review 1: How does Sona peerage Feel That Sona Is Issei Queen? - Stephen

Answer 1: They don't mind since Issei and Sona are engaged. The girls think it's somewhat Romantic, while they guys look at it as another way Issei is protecting her. You could say they think "He made her his queen because he loves her." You could also say that the bond between the two is strengthened even further since they are now part of each others peerage, which makes it easier for them to find each other.

Review 2: What Happened After That Please Update? And did they get more stronger and Did Ria's find Out that she Happy. - stephenkuhny1974

Answer 2: Here's your update. As for if they got stronger, how would we know just yet? I mean other than the boost to her power by being made a queen, Sona is the only one that obviously got stronger during this arc. Honestly Sona and Issei are the only two that actually got any stronger, the rest get to use this arc as a kick in the ass to push themselves even harder during training. Did Rias find out what? Are you talking about Sona's **Gorgon Eye** magic? If so, the answer is no Rias didn't find out. Issei and Sona never specified what her "Trump Card" was, just that she used it but it didn't take complete effect. Very few people are supposed to know about the specifics behind Sona's **Eye** magic after all. Side note, did you really review four times in the last two weeks asking about updates? I've stated several times now that I don't have an update schedule, it happens whenever it happens.

S.R: Moving on… Let's get to the story.

* * *

The next morning after waking up Issei sat down for breakfast with his adoptive parents. Sona was originally going to join them but something came up at school so she and the rest of the student council had to be there earlier than normal.

"Before I forget. On our way home from meeting some of papa's colleagues we ran into a family friend."

"Really? Who was it Issei?"

"It was aunt Grizelda. She is back in town for a bit. Because I told papa about her, he invited her to the full family dinner tonight."

"Oh that's wonderful news isn't it Iseki?"

"Yeah. It's been a while since we've seen her. I wonder why the church sent her back here for?"

"Maybe we'll ask her at dinner dear. Now hurry up Issei it's almost time for you to get going."

A short while later Issei was walking into his classroom only to be surprised that Momo and Reya weren't there yet. Luckily his two friends from the kendo club were in class already.

"Oh there you are Issei. It's been a while since you've been free to actually talk."

"Yeah, sorry about that Katasse, Murayama… But I wouldn't change anything that's happened."

"I know you wouldn't change things with Sona, but why not change anything else?"

"Oh that's right you guys haven't heard yet. Sona's older sister is a good friend and co-worker with my birth parents. They had business here in Kuoh a while back and decided to visit with Sona during lunch. My birth parents saw me and instantly recognized me as their long lost child."

"Why'd it take them this long to find you?"

"Apparently I was only a few months old, when someone who didn't like my papa decided to piss him off by kidnapping me straight out of my cradle. After getting as far away from papa and mama as they could the person just left me in a cardboard box in a back alley. Mom and dad found me as they were walking home from the movies that night and you guys know the rest."

"So you've been so busy trying to connect with your biological parents?"

"Yeah, well not just them but my entire family, and all of papa's colleagues."

"Papa?"

"Well I still call my adoptive parents mom and dad since I don't want to forget them or leave them out. So I call my birth parents mama and papa."

"I guess that makes sense."

By this time the rest of the class filtered into the room as well as the teacher. But there was still time before class actually started so everyone just listened to the story. Especially the teacher, who was now curious as to if both sets of parents would come to Parent Observation day, which just so happens to be tomorrow.

While the teacher was lost in her thoughts Issei pulled his two friends from the Kendo club to the side.

"I'm going to tell you guys something and trust that you won't do anything about it."

"Okay?"

"We all know Rias was the one that started the rumors about me and what not right?"

"Yeah. She's a bitch."

"Everyone in her club is a bitch for going along with her."

"Koneko didn't go along with Rias. But that's besides the point. She has apologized to me and been punished severely for it."

"I get how you'd know she apologized but how would you know about her being punished Ise?"

"My birth father is actually Rias's older brother."

"That means-"

"Yes, she is my aunt. That's how I know she's been punished."

"I'll trust you on this, but if she does anything else I won't hold back."

"She's worked hard to earn my forgiveness and I've given it. Even if you two can't forgive, can you at least forget what she's done?"

"I suppose."

"If you say so."

With that the trio of teens returned to their normal seats and started preparing for class.

But there was another surprise for the class that were about to be revealed. Issei and Sona had convinced Garran to attend school with the rest of them. Rugal was also convinced, when they went to talk to him about it he mentioned that he was enrolling in the local college since he, like Sona's other pawn Shin had already graduated from High School.

"Alright class it's time to get started. The first thing we are doing today however is welcoming a new student. Please come in."

As the teacher spoke the classroom door opened to reveal a boy, much to the happiness of the females in the class. Issei's friend and bishop Garran was revealed to the class. Garran's shaggy unkempt looking black hair framed his face. Sharp grayish blue eyes, made everyone feel like his stare was that of a wolf's. A very short goatee on his chin finished off the look which told the class he wasn't from Japan, or at the very least wasn't a full blooded Japanese person. He wore the school uniform just like Issei did, with the jacket open and the white button up shirt undone with a solid color shirt underneath. Except Issei's shirt was red for reasons unknown to those that didn't know of the supernatural, or at least those that didn't know that he was the host of Ddraig the Red Dragon thus making Issei the Red Dragon Emperor. Garran's shirt was a sky blue, mostly because it was his favorite color but also because he wanted to represent his affinity with ice in some way.

"Would you please introduce yourself?"

"Hi. I'm Garran Flamel. I just moved here recently. I don't intend to hangout with anyone that I haven't already met while I familiarized myself with the town."

"You already know some of the people here at Kuoh?"

"I know the Student Council members, the Occult Club members and Issei there."

As he spoke Garran pointed to Issei. The two shared a look at that, Issei silently telling him that was all the class had to know. Because of his perceived arrogance by the boys of the class when he said he didn't intend to get to know anyone he didn't he was immediately disliked by them thus making the girls of the class see him as another "Prince of Kuoh Academy." The current "Princes" of the school being Kiba for his gentlemanly attitude and non-perverted personality, and more recently Issei. After the Kendo club started combating the rumors that had been going around school his reputation skyrocketed amongst the girls. It only increased further when they learned that not only were Issei and the Student Council President Sona an item the two were engaged, thus meaning he only had eyes for her. His fellow males in the school still didn't believe it but they didn't fight him over it since he had become friends with not just the perverted duo from before but Kiba and now Garran. But since they didn't know much about Garran other than his name his title as prince was "The Mysterious Prince" to go along with Kiba's "White Prince" and Issei's "Ice Rose Prince".

By the end of the school day the trio of boys had heard all the gossip and news they could handle and were groaning as they gathered with the rest of the devils of Kuoh.

"What the hell is wrong with people?"

"A lot of stuff if they could come up with that crap… I mean seriously they all know the truth but are willingly ignoring it."

"That's why it wasn't worse Issei… Be glad it wasn't worse or the other boys in the school might have tried something stupid."

"Really you two? Letting fan-girls and their fantasies bother you? Ignore it just like you do the hatred of the other guys in the school."

"Shut up Kiba. I never had to deal with this crap when I was part of Grauzauber."

At this point Rugal, Shin, and Zoephiel who were all enrolled in the local college entered the room with confused looks. Behind them was Bova who had to use an illusion spell to hide the fact he's a dragon. Kalawarner was the only devil missing from the group, but that was normal. She and Bova were the only two in the entirety of the three peerages to not attend school.

Bova because his personality made it tough to fit in and he didn't much like the idea of holding back, so they let him get away with just using illusions to fit in with the group in non-supernatural situations. Kalawarner on the other hand even when using illusions to change her appearance was too old. Which she was fine with. After all while she might not have been on the same level as Azazel or Baraquiel she was at least just as old as the two having been an angel alongside them. So she normally spent most of the day working on contracts with Issei's familiars Tawni and Tiamat. Because of that trio Issei normally just sat around with Sona helping her finish paperwork while she assigned her peerage to their contracts.

"Um, Boss what they hell are you talking about?"

But Bova was ignored as Issei and Garran continued to shudder at the attention they had from the female student body. It wasn't until Rias was able to stop chuckling at them that the none academy students got an answer. Zoephiel had to laugh at them, though she did gain a slight blush from the thoughts that she now had running in her head with a perverted grin. But that should have been expected since she like most fallen-angels was extremely lustful.

Rugal just shook his head at the younger boys, while Shin had a sympathetic look on his face having had a similar title when he was in high school due to how hardworking he'd been for the sake of his younger siblings. Eventually the group set about their normal actions of completing contracts while it was still light out. Since they had to act as guards for the Devils during the Faction meeting they couldn't meet up at night to train like they had been before the incident with Kokabiel.

 **Later on in the day**

Issei, Koneko, and Sona had left a little earlier than normal since it was the "Full Family Dinner" night at the Hyoudou household. Since they were going to have a guest as well Koneko and Sona were helping Issei's adoptive mother Emiko in the kitchen when his actual parents and little brother Millicas arrived.

"Issei! Koneko!"

Millicas called as he looked for his older siblings wanting to give them a hug. The two made their way to his side and complied, hugging him in return. All the adults present smiled at the sight, proud of how well the three got along. Grayfia gave Issei and Koneko a quick hug as well before following the small white haired girl into the kitchen so the girls could talk while cooking. Issei and Sirzechs shared a smile as they sat down in the living room with his adoptive father Iseki, while Millicas happily talked with Issei about what he'd learned earlier in the day.

It wasn't long till there was a knock at the door. Issei moved to answer it, with Sirzechs following as he there was a question he wanted to ask the person they were expecting. The two stepped out after seeing that it was their expected guest Grizelda that had knocked.

"Hi Aunt Grizelda!"

"Hi there Issei. Hello Lord Lucifer."

"Please Call me Sirzechs."

"Alright."

"I have something I want to ask..."

"Ask away Sirzechs."

"Iseki and Emiko aren't clueless about the supernatural world are they?"

"Papa what are you talking about?"

"No Issei he's right. It's been decades now but, Emiko's family used to attend the church I was working out off when she was still in school. I had to rescue them from a stray devil one night and she saw. Because I was working on my own and it wasn't a specialty of mine I couldn't erase her memory of that night… Iseki I'm not sure off but he knew about the supernatural when I first met him, which was back when you were small enough to be cradled in our arms."

"You mean?"

"They knew something was off about whoever it was that had left you in that alleyway, so they came to me with you. Because they wanted to raise you they asked for my help in keeping you safe. They also asked that I would teach you about any possible powers you may have, that way you would be able to protect yourself if the need ever arose."

"Do you have an idea of how much they know?"

"Well they know how to use their senses to feel aura, but that's it."

"So they know we aren't human but they don't know that we're devils?"

"Unless you've told them the truth then no they don't know. But they have good heads on their shoulders so they won't freak out or change their opinions of you if you do tell them."

"Since they know about your ties to the supernatural would you help us explain Grizelda? It'll make it easier to bring the topic up."

"Of course. Now then I can see Emiko peeking through the window at us so I think we shouldn't keep everyone waiting."

Issei and the two adults entered the house, with everyone greeting their guest Grizelda. It turns out that the women had just finished setting the table when Issei and Sirzechs stepped out to welcome her, so everyone moved quickly to the table. It was a very good time for everyone since they got to relax. By the time everyone had finished eating Sirzechs was ready to talk to Iseki and Emiko about them being supernatural beings. Sirzechs had a hold of his wife Grayfia's hand squeezing it to let her know to follow his lead. Issei did something similar with his Fiancee Sona.

"So Grizelda I'm told you work for the church?"

"Yes. It might not be very glamorous but it is very rewarding."

"Speaking of the church, what are you doing back in Kuoh? I thought they decided to pull their efforts back in Italy instead of struggle here in Japan."

"As you know I've been working as an exorcist. I'm one of the top five best exorcists in the church right now and the leaders needed an escort to a faction meeting here in town. Since I was stationed here in the past I was a natural candidate for the job."

Grayfia and Sona both had their eyes open in shock, but because Issei and Sirzechs squeezed their hands again only tighter this time they didn't say anything.

"Really now. It must be a very important meeting."

"I was wondering why I felt far more supernatural presences in town lately."

"It's a very important meeting. The angels, fallen-angels, and devils have decided to change the cease fire into a proper peace treaty."

"I wonder. Do you have any part in that meeting Sirzechs?"

"I'm one of the faction leaders."

"Sirzechs?!"

Grayfia couldn't keep silent at that, wondering what he was thinking. At that point Grizelda revealed to how she first met Issei to the two unknowing devils. Both were quiet as they listened though they were relieved when Emiko and Iseki said that knowing about them being inhuman didn't change the fact they were family.

"I'll admit I'm curious now. Which faction are you? Grizelda is showing you respect certainly but not enough to make me believe you're one of the seraphs. Plus I don't remember hearing about a red-haired angel."

"You two know how the Great War ended with the deaths of God and the original four Satans right?"

"I remember Grizelda telling me something like that."

"I've heard it before."

"I'm one of the four that has been chosen to lead the devils as a Satan. The original Satans names are being used as titles now. I hold the title of Lucifer."

"So you're the one my father called 'that walking mass of destruction in devil form'."

"You're father?"

"I guess I let the cat out of the bag. I've known about the supernatural since I was young because I'm a Shinto demigod. My father is Susanoo."

"Is that how the Gods of the other factions see me? Well I suppose that's fairly accurate considering I rank in the top 10 strongest beings in the world when I unleash my full power."

" **Yes, you are exceptionally powerful for someone that isn't a God or ancient dragon. By ancient dragon I mean one of the dragons older than even the original leader of the Egyptian faction Atem. Izanagi too for that mater.** "

"Issei did… Did your arm just talk?"

"Yeah, I have one of the Sacred Gears."

"Considering it talks I assume its a powerful one right?"

"Yup, that's right dad. I've got the Sacred Gear **Boosted Gear**. Which means I'm the current Red Dragon Emperor. That voice was Ddraig."

"Huh?"

"Sorry honey. I forgot that you only know the basics of the supernatural world. Grizelda told you about the Great War between the angels, fallen-angels, and devils correct?"

"Yes."

"Well at the same time as that war there was a massive fight between two powerful dragons. Ddraig and his rival Albion. These two dragons on their own were stronger than most Gods. Anyway their fight ended up causing a disturbance to all sides during that Great War. Thanks to that they temporarily teamed up to defeat the two dragons and God, sealed their souls inside two of his Sacred Gears. Sacred Gears are devices he made for humans to be able to defend themselves from the supernatural world."

"But if Issei is Sirzechs and Grayfia's son how does he have a Sacred Gear?"

"Since God passed away at the end of the war, his son and chosen successor Micheal has taken over the system that controls and distributes the Sacred Gears. However he doesn't have complete control over the system so there are errors at times. It could be for that reason."

" **In our case that isn't quite** **right. I've finally managed to figure out why I have such a strong connection to Issei. Sirzechs you have so much power that despite genetically being a devil you could be considered a humanoid dragon. Issei inherited that same power and it drew my soul to him. You see a** **ll Sacred Gears that have a soul sealed inside them are unique. Most Sacred Gears have to be unlocked, but those with a soul have more to it than that. Even if you can unlock these Sacred Gears they aren't quite as strong as they should be. For example the Boosted Gear doubles Issei's power every ten seconds. If his power is 100 that means after one Boost it becomes 200. If I wasn't awake and able to speak with him it would be 150 after the first Boost and the Boosts would be much slower being once every thirty seconds instead. It's only when you have the soul inside awake and working with you to learn about its power that you can access it's full capabilities….** **When there are similarities between the host and the soul inside the Sacred Gear it is much easier to awake the soul.** **But the Boosted Gear is one of two extremely special gears even in that aspect.** "

"Ddraig, what are you talking about?"

" **The other Sacred Gears with a soul inside have access to every ability that soul had before being sealed. Albion and I on the other hand do not.** **In other words your Boosted Gear and the Divine Dividing that holds Albion are weird even among other Sacred Gears…** **So far the only abilities of mine from before being sealed that can be used by my hosts are Boost,** **Transfer, Penetrate, and Outrage.** **But by being my host you also become part dragon thus granting you the standard Dragon ability to breathe fire.** "

"I wonder why you only have a few of your skills..."

" **Even I do not know for sure. But I have noticed that every time one of my older powers is unlocked it's because the one that first used it managed to over come the insanity caused by using Juggernaut Drive, the strongest power available to a Sacred Gear. In other words my powers are unlocked the same way I earned them, pushing myself to the limit in order to gain the upper hand in my battle with Albion… But enough about me and the past. You all gathered to have a good time and relax after all.** "

With Ddraig's order everyone went silent for a moment as they gathered their thoughts. It didn't take long for things to go back to normal as Issei's adoptive parents wouldn't change their opinions on any of them even after learning the truth about them. There was a nice hug between Issei and the two before he made it a group hug. After that everyone just started sharing stories about Issei, as a way to bond.

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S.R: There, are you happy now people? There's an update! Now these next few updates are going to be slower since I have to re-read everything after this point in canon. My other stories will probably be getting a lot of work done on them in the meantime though so I'm not going completely dark on you all.


	25. Parents Day

S.R: Sorry about it taking so long to get caught up. As I told a few of you in replies to your reviews I had a feeling my ADHD would make it take much longer than it should for me to re-read enough of the canon DxD story to continue. I was right, but that's neither here nor there. Anyway I'd like to give a quick shout out to **Imperial-samaB** because without reading their stories I wouldn't have had a clue for how to go about making Issei and Vali friends like I will be trying to do in this chapter. Now, that I've said what I wanted, let's move on to the story.

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Issei enjoyed the rest of the night with his family, after learning that his adoptive parents knew about the supernatural. Because he didn't want to hide anything from the two, he and Sona shared a few stories about things they'd accomplished. The adults minus Issei's adoptive mother all shared a story or two about their experiences as well. Eventually it was time for everyone to go, Sirzechs being the last one out as he told Issei there was a surprise for during the parents day.

The red haired devil didn't tell his son anything else about it, so Issei was on edge when he got to class. Eventually he noticed a few extra faces in the crowd of parents. Aside from both sets of his parents, he saw Garran's grandfather, and Serafall's bishop Ibuki, Grizelda was there as well, and most surprisingly was Azazel.

After thinking about it for a moment, Issei realized Ibuki was present to check in on Momo and Reya who were also in his class, probably in an attempt to make it so none of Sona's peerage were left out. Which made sense to him since Sona and Tsubaki had Serafall, and the other two high school students in her peerage still had their own families looking out for them. On the other hand Grizelda was just lost and looking in to ask where to find the third year classes, since she had come for parents day to check in on Xenovia who Rias had enrolled as a third year. But he had no clue why Azazel was there. As he began to question it, the teacher noticed the man standing with the parents.

"Ah, Mr. Azazel, you aren't due to actually start working as a teacher here for another few days. Why are you standing in with the parents?"

"I've got two reasons. The first is so I can try and familiarize myself with the students, and the second is because my nephew is staying with me so I decided to enroll him here. He'd be standing here with me while we wait for the paperwork to go through, but he wasn't feeling well today."

"I see. Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to introduce you to the students. Class, this is Mr. Azazel, he's being brought on as a teacher and adviser for the Occult Research Club. He'll be starting Monday, but since he's here why don't we welcome him?"

The students did exactly that, before the teacher decided to move on from their current subject which was math. She brought out molding clay and a few water based paints and a giant stack of construction paper.

"Everyone take a sheet of paper to work on, that way your desk stays clean. You can make whatever you want with the clay, or you can paint."

Most of the parents got vocal over their children at that point, saying that their kid would do this or that. A few just cheered them on by saying 'Show me what you can do', but Issei's parents all watched him with silent smiles. Because he spent a lot of time creating different kinds of art, they had no idea what he would make with the clay he grabbed.

Issei though, knew exactly what he was going to do and grabbed a larger portion of clay than normal. After sitting back down his hands went straight to work shaping the clay. Within minutes he had formed the basic shape of legs and a body. Some of the other onlooking parents where surprised at how fast he was creating his sculpture. It was like watching a video in fast forward. Ten minutes into shaping the clay he had a quadrupedal body, four thick and strong legs, a long serpentine tail with a spear shaped tip, and the neck. He was currently just shaping the head, intending to get the shape set before moving onto the wings, and then working on the details.

While Issei was busy sculpting, Garran had decided to paint. The hand holding the brush started hovering just below the middle of the paper, but off to the side so that he wasn't near the center. Quick yet smooth brush strokes brought the basic shape of a hut. The details of said hut became more and more apparent as the boy worked, the colors chosen and the shading done bringing the old stone hut to life. Moving over to a sink Garran rinsed his brush off, before coming back to his seat and getting back to work. With a light green, he began working on a circular area that housed the hut.

At this point his grandfather who was watching intently knew exactly what the boy was painting. While the man was old, he was far older than his fellow humans due to magic. Because of that he recognized his childhood home being painted by his grandson.

Around the time Garran started to work on the trees at the edge of the clearing in his painting, Issei had just finished shaping the wings on his sculpture, which the adults that knew about the supernatural recognized as Ddraig. Though only Azazel was able to truly recognize it, the others only guessing that the dragon Issei was working was Ddraig.

Meanwhile in the third year classes, Grizelda had finally found Xenovia's class and was watching over her, Rias, Akeno, and Sona alongside Serafall, and Rias's father Zeoticus. Zeoticus and Grizelda chatted amiably while trying to restrain Serafall who at that point was gushing over her little sister.

The third years had also been given art supplies to work with. Xenovia had grabbed the clay and was making a model of a holy sword, one that she hadn't even told her devil master Rias that she could use. Rias, had no idea what to make and was just staring at the clay she had on her desk. Akeno was painting her late mother, but nobody knew that besides her. Sona on the other hand was painting with a blush on her face. So far she had one side of the paper as her in a white wedding dress, and the shape of a body on the other side. For those in the know about her and Issei being together, which was everyone but the parents and teacher in the room it was really cute and slightly funny. The funny aspect of it being the fact that their stoic Student Council President was embarrassed.

Eventually lunch time came and the teens gathered on the roof to enjoy the nice day. The adults all joined causing a few scattered groups of chatter. Sirzechs and Azazel approached Issei, leading him to recall his fathers statement from the previous night.

"So what's the surprise you mentioned last night papa?"

"Well Azazel, is technically Vali's guardian so he and I have been talking about the two of you since as the Red and White Dragon Emperors you are supposed to be rivals."

"That's right. Anyway, Vali likes a good fight, but he knows and understands that not everyone is like that. We're hoping that you could talk to him and shift the focus of your rivalry towards something… less lethal than fighting. If it were possible I'd ask you to try and end the rivalry but Vali is competitive so I doubt you would be able to do that."

"Considering I don't particularly enjoy fighting, I'd be perfectly fine with that. But I don't think it's me you're trying to convince."

" **You want Albion and I to be civil towards each other…. I can't truly say I'm against the thought since it's been so long I've forgotten why we were fighting in the first place. The problem is with our pride, neither of us will acknowledge the other unless our hosts are clashing in some way. It's why our hosts normally have a very intense rivalry.** "

"Would competitive gaming, or sports work as clashing? It's a safer form of competition but you can still trash talk each other."

Before Ddraig could give his opinion on the question asked by Sirzechs, Azazel had a communication circle appear next to his ear. As it faded Azazel just gave Issei and Sirzechs a location and said to meet them later as he was just reminded of something else he needed to do.

Walking towards Rias's queen Akeno, Azazel pulled her away from the large group for a moment.

"I don't know or really care if you trust me right now, but I'm going to speak and I both need and want you to listen very carefully."

Not sure how to take it, and knowing that Azazel could easily prevent her from getting away, she chose to sit and listen to the man.

"I know you are the daughter of my dear friend and comrade Baraquiel. I also know that he asked Rias to talk to you about letting him apologize to you for not being there… Please don't blow him off. I understand you don't want to see him, but it's my fault that it happened. He didn't leave because he wanted to, he left because I had a job for him. If you're going to be angry about it, direct that anger towards me, and let your father try and make up for it."

"Why? Why now after all this time?"

"That is a question for him to answer."

"Bring him here. I want to know...I.. I have to know."

Using his communication circle Azazel told his friend about the conversation he just had, and asked the man to come and step in. Well more like ordered, since he said "Baraquiel, get your ass over here and talk with your daughter already." Within moments they group of two became a group of three.

"Akeno I… I'm so sorry I wasn't there when I needed to be."

"I can understand that. Azazel told me why you left, and I'm not mad about that. I'm mad about the fact you didn't try and find me. You didn't come back!"

"When I found out what happened I was devastated… I didn't feel like I had the right to be near you let alone be a father to you since I wasn't there when you needed me the most. I've checked in on you occasionally, but every time I even thought about approaching you I froze. I felt like I didn't deserve to be your father anymore. Hell if Azazel hadn't pushed me to try and talk to you when the idea of the faction meeting came up, I probably wouldn't have pulled myself together enough to try."

"Well my old friend, I couldn't just stand by and watch you mope anymore. Besides with the faction meeting to bring peace I figured this would be the best chance you got to speak to her."

"I… I'm still mad at you. But… I'll give you a chance."

Azazel smiled as he left the two to talk things out. Eventually lunch ended and everyone went back to what they were doing before, the teens all groaning as the school day dragged on. However because Koneko was unofficially adopted to be Issei's younger sister, for the afternoon both sets of parents left the second year classroom to check in on her in the first year classroom.

Once the school day ended everyone went about business as usual except for Issei and Sirzechs who decided to check out the place Azazel had mentioned to them earlier. As it turns out the place was Azazel's. Since the fallen-angel had decided to stay in Kuoh once the peace treaty was formalized, he bought the place for him and Vali to live in. Mostly because he still needed to keep an eye on Vali, who decided that he wanted to stay in Kuoh.

"Oh hey there Sirzechs, Issei. Welcome to my new home."

"It's a nice place."

"Yeah. Besides I think you'll like it here in Kuoh."

With the greetings out of the way Azazel lead them to the living room where Vali was currently waiting. Issei walked right on in and sat down beside the silver haired boy while the two adults watched from a distance. They knew that it would be up to the boys to get the two Heavenly Dragons to be civil and stop fighting while their current hosts were alive.

Vali was sitting on the couch his right arm resting on the side, and his left leg crossed over his right.

He turned his head towards Issei when the brown haired boy sat down.

"What's up, Red?"

"Please don't call me that. Especially since I'd rather not have anything to do with Ddraig and Albion's fight."

"I know. I've heard a lot about how different you are compared to his past hosts. I'd like to say I'm different from Albion's previous hosts, but I do like to fight."

"I don't. That's not to say I won't fight to protect others and maintain peace. I just don't think fighting should be for fun."

"There's nothing wrong with that. Hell it's probably a good thing you feel that way. We'd probably already be fighting if that weren't the case."

"True. Honestly though? I don't think it's a bad idea to have a rival. Just not one that I'm supposed to actually fight with. I'd rather compete with you."

"Competition, brings out improvement in most cases. Rivals are fueled by the desire to be better than each other and constantly improve and grow more capable. It's not a bad idea. But what would we compete in?"

"Well, I'm not much of a sports person so that's off the table. Art isn't really something you could compete in either..."

"There are competitions in music, but I'm not much of a musician. All that really leaves us would be games."

"Games would be a god choice. After all if we were to pick a fighting game like say, Super Smash Bros. We could still trash talk each other."

"Works for me. But why stop there? Why not have multiple games that we are rivals in."

"Sure."

After a moment they stood up and Vali led Issei to the game room that Azazel had set up. Even though they agreed to play multiple games, the two started with Super Smash Bros. Since it was the only game to be be mentioned by name. Meanwhile Sirzechs and Azazel both breathed a sigh of relief, happy that they wouldn't have to hold the two down and prevent them from fighting.

"I've got to hand it to them, those two have good heads on their shoulders."

"You've got that right Azazel. Actually I wouldn't be surprised if they eventually got Ddraig and Albion to reconcile."

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S.R: There we go. See ya'll next time.


	26. Attack of The 'Old Devils' Faction

S.R: If you guys have check my other stories out then you'd know all the things that have lead to this chapter being delayed as much as it has… I mean I've had issues with Microsoft Office again that caused me to restart this chapter. I've also run into the problem of having a hard time focusing on anything but my One Piece story. My mind is a mess right now and it's not helping in the slightest. But I can't give this one up. Sure it's my take on a story that someone else is doing (reminder of the fact that I have permission to do this). But that doesn't mean I can stop so easily, especially since this is one of my favorite works that I've shared on here.

Anyway after a long delay we are back with a new chapter. Enjoy!

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The last night of the Faction meeting had come. As things had been the past few nights they had met, the majority of the guards were outside of the room, with only a handful inside the room. Issei, Rias, and Sona were the guards for the devils that got to stay in the room. Vali and Tobio were there for the fallen-angels. And the angels had brought Irina, Grizelda, and Dulio inside the room. Together the eight of them constituted the most trusted members of the security force, though that trust was also granted to the people under their command whether it be as their peerage, or in Vali's case the group of friends that he trusted.

Thanks to prolonging the peace talks to draft a treaty that would please all three sides, the leaders of each faction had time to talk about those that they knew would oppose the new peace. Sirzechs and Serafall told the others that there was a faction of devils that refused to follow them, and instead followed the descendants of the four original devils who's names were now used as titles for the leaders of the devil faction. Continuing on to state that this group which was called the 'Old Devils' faction would certainly take insult to a peace treaty.

The finalized treaty that they had gathered to sign and bring into effect officially had pleased them all. On top of all the normal aspects of a peace treaty there were a few bonuses. Ajuka would help heaven with creating their own version of the evil pieces system. Azazel would share his research results with everyone. Micheal and Gabriel would work on diffusing the holy energy inside some of the weapons that the church had, in order to be offered as gifts.

Just as everything was finalized there was a massive tremor that shook the building. Everyone rushed to the windows inside the room to peek out. There were a few columns of smoke that could be seen rising from a few craters in the ground. As they looked on, they were surprised to watch the protective barrier than had been set up. Since it was under attack the barrier was glowing but that glow was fading fast as the barrier lost power. Seconds after they noticed that, the barrier shattered. The moment it shattered screams and crying could be heard.

On top of the powerful people that had been brought, each of the faction leaders had to bring a small army for 'protective' reasons in case the meeting was attacked or one of the other factions tried to use it as a trap. The screams and cries that were piercing the air came from those armies. A large amount of devils had suddenly appeared and were attacking anyone and everyone in sight.

"I find myself surprised. I didn't think any of the 'Old Devil' faction would have the guts to attack a meeting when there was no possible chance they could do anything."

Sirzechs spoke calmly, as he turned and prepared to give out orders to the devils. Following his lead Micheal drew himself away from the window and prepared to give his exorcists the command to fight. Azazel however just chuckled.

"No offense Sirzechs, but considering the ferocity they're attacking with I thing you might be wrong… Well if it weren't for the fact they seem to severely underestimate the power we have under our command."

With an eyebrow raised Sirzechs turned to the fallen-angel.

"Are you agreeing with me or disagreeing?"

"Both… Vali I bet you've been pretty bored with this meeting, why don't you go entertain yourself."

"With pleasure."

As he spoke a feral grin came across Vali's face. Opening the window he stood next to Vali jumped out. Falling to the ground Vali quickly activated his ****Divine Dividing****. Since he wanted to show off a bit he just activated the base form. Dashing into the chaos Vali became a blur.

"I'm going to join him. Just leave it to us, alright?"

"Are you sure you want to do that Issei? I mean more fighters means this battle will end quicker, but just the two of you?"

"Of course I am Sona. Besides I'm hoping we can use this to try and get Ddraig and Albion to reconcile at least a little bit."

"But still-"

"Sonia. I'll be fine. Trust me."

"So let the Red and White Dragon Emperors handle it? If you're up to it then certainly, but if it seems to be too much I'll send someone to help out."

Micheal cut in.

"If you think you two can handle it. But if something happens we will step in."

Sirzechs gave his consent with a small proud smile, and a wink to Sona as a way to remind her that Issei is pretty powerful.

"Thanks Papa. Vali and I will have this dealt with shortly then."

Following Vali's lead Issei hopped out the window. Except instead of using his ****Boosted Gear**** he calmly snapped. His devilish magic flared out from him and coalesced into a set of stairs made from ice. Grinning as he joined the fight Issei advanced on the peons that had been brought to fight and wear down the defenders.

Raising both hands in front of him Issei held his left hand closed in a fist while his right hand was placed on top of it flatly with only his palm touching the other hand. Rotating his hands to the right he flared his magic just a bit.

"This is a new spell I've been waiting to try out. Let's see how you all like the cold! ****Frigid Blade**** "

As he spoke Issei pulled his left hand away from his right in a horizontal slash. A wave of icy cold energy arced out. The energy was cold enough that permafrost covered the ground underneath it as it raced outwards. Once the permafrost had covered the ground underneath an enemy it would climb up their body and slowly compress itself as layer after layer built on top of itself encasing them in a cocoon of frost.

Smirking Issei thought to himself ' _ _Damn that's cool. It might not be a flash freeze like my__ _ ** _ **Arctic Wasteland**_**_ _ _spell but it's still pretty fast acting.'__

Floating a short distance away Vali whistled.

"You might not like fighting, but you're certainly capable."

" ** **Of course my host is. Especially since he is both protecting his mate and showing off for her****."

" ** **You say that Ddraig, yet he's not even using your power.**** "

"That just means he doesn't have to rely on Ddraig all the time Albion."

As they bantered several of the enemy devils were confused. The Red and White Dragon Emperors were working together instead of fighting. Even the dragons they were host to didn't seem to have much animosity for each other. Of course that was only to be expected for those that didn't know that over the past few days the factions had been meeting the two teens had become friendly rivals through games. Or that thanks to the new form of rivalry Ddraig and Albion were at least being civil with each other.

"Hey Vali. How about we make a bet?"

"Most enemies beaten? Or who can get the last one?"

"Both. One point for all of them until the last guy… Let's say the last one standing is worth five points."

"Deal. Hope you're ready to lose!"

As he spoke Vali gathered his power. With a bloodthirsty grin Vali activated his ****Balance Breaker**** state a loud call of ' ** **Vanishing Dragon Balance Breaker: Scale Mail**** ' echoing out from the wings that were ****Divine Dividing**** as he did.

" ** **Well partner if we want to win this bet you're going to need the Boosted Gear."****

"True… Since he wants to put on a show let's oblige him."

Following Vali's lead Issei activated his ****Boosted Gear**** and then collected his power to activate ****Balance Breaker****. Similar to Vali's activation a voice echoed out from the ****Boosted Gear 'Welsh Dragon Balance Breaker: Scale Mail'****.

As he did this there were several gasps from the people that were watching the fight. Even his peerage and close friends had no idea that he had achieved ****Balance Breaker**** as well.

"Wha-? Since When has Issei had ****Balance Breaker****?"

"You tell me!"

"Wait, you don't know either?"

As the group still inside the meeting room tried to find out who knew about it Azazel and Sirzechs chuckled. Both knew that despite the fact Issei claims to dislike fighting without a reason, he still liked to train and grow stronger. The two men knew it just by how he interacted with Vali while they played games, as the two would talk about their fighting abilities and share ideas with each other not just with the fighting games they played but their actual combat abilities as well.

Sirzechs had also taken the time to have a few chats with Ddraig while Issei was asleep. From those talks he knew that Issei liked to use his dream world to train with Ddraig. The idea was that training with Ddraig would help him learn to use all the powers and abilities he gains from being Ddraig's host.

Matching Vali's grin from before they activated their ****Balance Breakers**** the two dived headlong into fighting again. With their power increased the two of them tore threw the 'Old Devil' faction easily. From the time they activated ****Balance Breaker**** to the time the fight ended, only ten minutes had passed. Turning to each other they grinned ready to share the total points they earned for their bet.

But just before either of them could speak, let alone deactivate their Sacred Gears a magic circle formed in the air just in front of them. Stepping out of the circle was a woman. One that Sirzechs and Serafall knew well. Azazel, Baraqiel, Micheal and Gabriel somewhat recognized her. The six of them all rushing outside to stand in front of the two teens that just trashed the 'Old Devil' factions soldiers.

"Issei, Vali stand down and let one of us handle her."

Sirzechs said as he glared at the woman.

"My, my. Too think I warrant you all standing here ready to fight. Such a shame it doesn't matter..."

"Katerea Leviathan. You are certainly stronger than last time we met. But not enough to be so boastful."

With a distasteful tone to her voice Serafall spoke to the woman.

"Ha, you insignificant worms can't tell just how superior I am."

"Lady, I can feel your power quite clearly. It's certainly a strong level, but it's not enough for any of us standing here."

Azazel chimed in lazily. Issei and Vali, weren't quite sure if Azazel was including them or not. Despite their strength the two of them had used up a fair bit of energy. While they could still fight, they weren't at 100% anymore. Though they both hoped that he was inculding them in that comment as it meant he trusted their power was enough.

"Oh? The measly little crow things he can hold a candle to me? Especially after I've been granted such power? It's laughable."

"Pffft, Lady you're still too weak for us to take seriously. Here, let me show you."

Ending his banter with Katerea, Azazel vanished from sight before suddenly appearing behind her a spear made of light in his hand. She dodged it easily, before swiping her staff towards the black winged man. Four magic circles appeared between the two as large serpent like shapes raced towards him.

For his part Azazel calmly evaded the first three and blocked the last with just his hand. Raising his other hand he held up a finger and shook it side to side.

"Tsk, tsk. Using power that isn't yours and then claiming to be stronger, when I can still do this? Grow up."

Flapping his wings, Azazel teleported rapidly between a few locations. Those being right below Katerea, right behind, to the right, and to the left. Leaving after images in each of those locations he thrust out his hands, both holding spears of light. Not bothering to dodge attacks from the after images Katerea thrust her staff upward to block the two coming from the real Azazel. But with her arrogant pride making her think the after images were fake, she was pierced by the spears from her left and right.

"That's what I mean. You though all of those were after images? I may be a little rusty when it comes to fighting but I do know how to use my feathers to make instant clones."

"Cheap tricks mean nothing against me."

"Or so you say… Enough beating around the bush though. You've openly admitted to being given power. Who tricked you into thinking it would be enough to deal with us?"

"Tricked me? You've got this all backwards. I tricked her. Like hell anyone would be able to match something she couldn't."

With an angry growl Katerea tried to launch even more of her serpent like energy spells. Sighing Azazel twirled around them, as if he was dancing. But making a sudden stop he reached out and grabbed one, crushing it in his grasp.

"Let's see now… It's a she that gave you power. That helps narrow it down. All of your attacks have had a serpent like appearance to them, so that leads me to believe it's someone connected to reptilian animals at least. Maybe a serpent dragon, but they're pretty rare. Then you mention that she wanted help besting someone she couldn't beat... Interesting."

"Pah, like you could figure it out without the answer being spoon fed to you."

Grinning at her insult Azazel thrust a hand forward faster than she could see, or react to. His hand latched onto her throat and pulled her towards him. Swiping his free hand down in a chopping motion, Azazel forcefully cut off one of her wings causing the woman to scream in pain.

"You vile-"

"Hmm…. No regeneration, so that rules out the Goddesses connected to reptiles… Considering your base power it would have to be someone who could give you a little bit of power but make it feel like a ton. That narrows it done even further."

"I told you, you'll never figure it out."

While she tried to taunt him Azazel calmly switched hands around her throat, and repeated his previous action, cutting off her other wing.

"Oh, but that's where you're wrong little Missy. I guess you were so weak that they couldn't give you too much power without killing you. As for the one that gave you said power? I've just been toying with you. I have both seen and recently spoken with her, so I know what her power feels like. You were given power by Ophis, the Ouroboros Dragon… But I'm not sure why?"

"Then you'll die without knowing why!"

Katerea responded hotly as she activated her magic. Her body started glowing red, as if it was slowly getting hotter and hotter. As that happened she wrapped her arms around Azazel's body, using even more magic to make them extend even further so she could bind him with her arms. Once she had done that Katerea began laughing maniacally before her magic caused her body to explode as she sacrificed her body to self destruct in an attempt to defeat Azazel.

Just before she exploded however Azazel moved his free hand to her head. He let a pulse of magic flow between his hand hand her head. Azazel chuckled, but the sound came from a short distance away.

"I did mention that I can use my feathers to create clones right? Never assume you're fighting the real me. Thanks for the information though."

Pulling his wings back in Azazel descended to the ground to stand with his fellow leaders. Brushing the imaginary dust off his shoulders he gave them a grin.

"That went well."

"Mind sharing what you found out?"

Sirzechs asked, slightly irritated at the nonchalant way Azazel was handling things.

"Yes, __dear__ brother that information would be appreciated."

Micheal commented, sounding frustrated with the fallen-angel.

"But of course. I was just thinking we'd return to the meeting room so that we could discuss it without any possible unwanted listeners."

As he spoke Azazel used his teleportation magic to return to the room. But not before telling Vali he did a good job. The other leaders followed him back, though Sirzechs was the last one to move.

"Issei, you and Vali did a great job. I appreciate it."

"No problem."

"Yeah papa, Vali's right. It wasn't a problem."

"Still it's good to see you two working together."

With that they returned to the room as well.

After making sure that everyone was ready to hear the news he had stolen from Katerea with his mental magic, Azazel explained. The Ouroboros Dragon also known as Ophis, had apparently gathered people that wanted power. She had promised them power to do whatever they wanted, in return for their support in defeating Great Red. But Katerea, and probably the majority of the people that had been gathered were just using Ophis for her power and had no intention of fighting Great Red. In Katerea's case she wanted the power so she could storm the meeting and kill all who were involved before taking control over the Devils and leading them to take over the world.

While Azazel explained everything Issei held a mental chat with Ddraig.

' _ _Ddraig, should I know about Ophis and Great Red?'__

' _ ** _ **Long story short, Ophis and Great Red are dragons. They are also the two strongest beings in existence. Stronger than all the Gods. Hell Ophis has always been strong enough that even if Albion and I worked together we would be unable to scratch her. That's despite the two of us also being amongst the top 10 strongest beings when we had our full power.'**_**_

' _ _Wait. didn't Papa say he was in the 10 strongest beings the other night?'__

' _ ** _ **That's the current list. There are a few of us that are no longer on the list due to loosing power, or in the case of Balor and the christian God being killed.'**_**_

' _ _God was part of that list?'__

' _ ** _ **The original list goes something like this. 1. Great Red 2. Ophis**_**_ ** _ **3\. Shiva**_** _ ** _ **and God**_**_ _ ** _ **4**_**_ _ _ **. Albion and myself, though I need to mention that if we weren't exhausted from fighting each other God would not have been able to seal us. In perfect condition either one of us could have beaten him, but even a fly could have killed us after, and that's only because we are older and more experienced in fighting than he was. Anyway**__ _ ** _ **5**_**_ _ ** _ **.**_**_ _ ** _ **Indra,**_**_ _ ** _ **Brahma, and Vishnu**_**_ _ ** _ **6**_**_ _ ** _ **.**_**_ _ ** _ **Balor**_**_ ** _ **7\. Lugh**_** _ ** _ **8\. Hades 9. Thor and 10. as Aten Ra.'**_**_

' _ _But that's 14 different beings not 10. though I guess it's hard to assign ranks when there were so many that were equal in power… Do you have an idea of what the current list is like?'__

' _ ** _ **Well. 1-4 are the same but without God, though Albion and I only stay on the list right now because we're still technically alive 5. would still be Brahma and Vishnu. 6. Lugh**_**_ _ ** _ **and Indra, who has weakened for some reason**_**_ _ ** _ **. 7. Is actually your father. He's pretty powerful. 8. Hades, and Ajuka. According to you're father Ajuka is also considered to be in the top ten. Anyway Thor stays at number 9. and number 10. Fenrir.'**_**_

' _ _Is this based off educated guesses?'__

' _ ** _ **Yes and no. I actually know your father is stronger than Thor and Hades at least. He tells me they are still in the top 10, and that Ajuka is also in the top 10 now. Which based on the power I felt from him I would be comfortable saying he's stronger than Thor at least. Aten hasn't been active in a very long time, and supposedly Loki's kid Fenrir is stronger than him but not as strong as Thor so I placed him accordingly.'**_**_

' _ _Papa told you about this? When?'__

' _ ** _ **Well the other day when you were napping he woke me up to have a chat. I asked about all this. Mainly because he and I are certain that one day you will rank in the top 10 as well.'**_**_

' _ _I've got a lot of work to do if I want to meet that expectation.'__

As their conversation came to an end, there was a hand waving in front of Issei's face. Sona was trying to get his attention.

"Yes?"

"Finally. You zoned out a while ago. I've been trying to get your attention for the last few minutes. The meeting is over. Everyone has returned home but us. Lord Lucifer went back to the underworld since you were preoccupied."

She huffed, the tone telling him that she wasn't happy and that there was something she wanted to talk about.

"Sorry, I had asked Ddraig for more information about Ophis and Great Red."

"Issei, I swear you better not be thinking about fighting either one of them or so help me-"

"No! No, of course not. I had never heard of them before so I asked Ddraig about them rather than interrupt the meeting."

"Good. Because I still have to yell at you for earlier!"

As she spoke this time her voice rose in volume. Wincing Issei recalled a bit of advice from his grandfather about wives wanting obedient husbands he bowed his head.

"I'm sorry dear."

"I know you've gotten to be pretty tough, but that doesn't mean you can take on everything!"

"I know Sona… I know that, but I heard the guards screaming in pain and crying for help and I couldn't stand by. Then I took a moment to think and I realized that Vali and the faction leaders are the only people that would have been able to shrug off the effects of my wide area attacks. Rather than risk you guys, or one of the faction leaders get hurt I decided to limit the amount of allies on the field."

"Still… Do you know how worried I was?"

"Of course I do. But like I said before I started fighting. Trust me. With Ddraig's help I can sense a persons power and compare it to my own. I knew that Vali and I would be more than enough to deal with the situation."

"Just… Just think about how I feel when you do that next time."

"Sona, unless I'm fighting to protect someone you will never have to worry about me going into a fight that would actually get me hurt… Now let's go home. I'm getting sleepy, and I bet you want to cuddle."


	27. A Summer Date and to The Underworld

S.R: I can't stop smiling and I don't know why. Hell I forgot why I was smiling in the first place. But let's see if I can make this chapter the reason for my smiling.

* * *

Things had settled down fairly quickly once the Faction Meeting was over. About a week and a half after the meeting was over Micheal had diffused the Holy energy from several swords. In order to represent the balance of power and respect between the three factions he gifted a pair of swords to the fallen-angels and the devils. He had gifted the fallen-angels with the sword Alondite, where as it's twin blade Ragnell was gifted to the devils.

But what surprised the teenage devils the most was after he had turned Ragnell over to Sirzechs, Micheal had spun in place to face Issei and bowed low while presenting him with a sword as well. His reasoning was as a wedding gift to Issei and Sona. The sword that he gave Issei was the legendary blade Ascalon, also known as the sword used by saint George to slay a dragon.

Though what none of the teens knew was that Sirzechs, Micheal, and Azazel had all agreed to try and limit the amount of weapons with the ability to slay dragons, or at the very least make sure they couldn't be used against the two Dragon Emperors. Mostly because Azazel and Sirzechs wanted to limit the amount of things with the potential to easily destroy Issei and Vali before they could reach their prime. After all as hosts to Ddraig and Albion the two were part dragon.

Other than that things had returned to normal, and carried on until it came time for Summer break. Once they had been released from school the teenage devils met up to discuss their Summer plans. Issei was the one to kick the conversation off.

"Well, what are we doing this summer?"

"Oh, I completely forgot you didn't know Issei…. There is a special meeting we have to attend. It's called the Youth Devils meeting."

"With Sirzechs allowing Azazel to sit in with him and the other Satans as they preside over the meeting I'd say it's more than a special meeting. Plus he wants to announce the return of his son, and your engagement so it may be a pretty embarrassing meeting."

Sona and Rias replied. But because it wasn't really enough for Issei to get a full picture he asked another question.

"So how's this going down?"

"Basically all the High class devils our age that have their own peerage will gather. We bring our peerages with us, spend a bit of time chatting with the others, sit down for a special dinner, then Lord Lucifer will give a speech, afterwords we peerage kings are supposed to stand up and announce our dreams in turn."

With Sona's itinerary like explanation of the meeting Issei was more than able to figure out what kind of meeting it was. Basically all of the High Class devils that were on the cusp of adulthood would be gathered and given a special feast as part of the passage into becoming an adult in Devil society.

"That makes sense. This meeting sounds like it's the devil equivalent of a graduation ceremony…. But what about announcing our dreams?"

"What do you mean by that? We just share our dreams with them. Like Sona's dream to build a school for Rating Games."

"No I got that. I was meaning more along the lines of what about those that don't have any grand dreams like that. I certainly don't. All I care about is getting to spend my life with Sona."

As he finished speaking Sona leaned onto his shoulder from her chair, but not before giving him a peck on the cheek. Rias just shrugged at his question, not really sure what to tell him about not having some big and grandiose dream. Sona didn't have a suggestion either, so he resolved himself to think about it over the next few days.

"Okay so I guess the next question is where should my peerage and I go. We could stay with Sona and her peerage since we're engaged, or we could go with Rias since I'm also part of the Gremory house."

"That's up to you Ise."

Sona replied with a smile before she glanced at the clock. Thanks to it being summer break they had more time to do contracts, so the trio of peerage kings hadn't gotten a chance to get together like this until now. But it was a holiday and Issei had asked her if she wanted to go on a date to the festival, which she needed to leave soon to get ready for.

Issei for his part noticed her checking the clock and had the same idea. Wrapping their meeting up the two returned to his home where they got ready. Though once he grabbed his clothes from his closet Sona pushed him out of the room so she could surprise him with her outfit. As he waited for his date Issei took the chance to check in with his slime familiar Tawni. He would have done the same with Tiamat, but Sona had asked the Chaos Karma dragon to help her.

"Sorry I haven't really had time to check in with you and Tiamat. I owe you two a lot since you manage a lot of contracts for me. Not to mention the secret training Tiamat's been helping me with."

Issei spoke to his green haired familiar, though the last bit was mumbled, so she didn't quite hear it.

"Think nothing of it. I mean despite the fact I still want to make you mine, I do owe you for giving me the chance to leave the Familiar Forest. I don't know about Tiamat, but I think she enjoys it here too."

"Still. I pile a lot of work on you so my peerage and I can still be normal to the public eye."

 **Meanwhile with Sona**

Since Sona didn't trust Tawni to help her without annoying her with the green slimes attempts to try and steal Issei from her, Sona had asked Tiamat to help her get ready for her date with Issei.

"Thank you for helping Tiamat."

"It's no problem Sitri. You are my masters fiancee, and someone I am not nearly instantly annoyed by."

The blue haired dragon in human form responded, the last part of her statement being a jab at her fellow familiar.

"Please call me Sona. I'd rather not be called by Sitri alone. Especially since I'm not going to be the head of family since I'm marrying Issei. But I wasn't thanking you just for helping me… I was thanking you for all the help you and Tawni are with Issei's contract work. While you two have been doing all that he's been able to live the way he wants to."

"You still don't need to thank me… Watching his power grow has been enjoyable. He's also been able to help me re-connect with Ddraig who is one of my oldest friends. So don't think of this as me serving him. Think of it as a give and take. Besides you all have grown on me. Even Tawni but don't tell her I said that."

As she spoke Tiamat finished brushing Sona's hair. Gently pulling it up Tiamat twisted the young devils hair into a bun. To hold the bun in the shape she wanted the Chaos Karma Dragon used a silver hair-stick. The end had an intricate red flower shaped tip.

Tiamat didn't say anything else as they continued with getting Sona ready for her date. Since it was Tiamat and she was normally very quiet Sona let the silence sit, and just enjoyed her time with the dragon. Now that her hair was out of the way Sona slipped her arms into the sleeves and draped her specially made yukata over her shoulders. Tucking it in around herself, she waited for Tiamat to adjust the length so that it was at her ankles rather than touching the floor. As Tiamat finished that Sona tied it in place and then turned. Taking the silver obi she had set aside to wear with her yukata and wrapping it around her waist, she held it out for Tiamat to take it. She patiently waited while Tiamat tied it for her. A moment later it was done and Tiamat motioned for Sona to do a slow spin so she could check their handy work.

Sona's yukata was a beautiful and shimmering icy blue with a nice silver trim. But the sleeves housed a pattern. That design was a long twisting and curling emerald green flower stem, that connected crimson flowers together.

Giving the girl a low whistle Tiamat smirked feeling proud of her work. Sona took that as a passing grade on her appearance and wondered over to her geta shoes.

 **With Issei**

After he finished thanking Tawni for her hard work Issei bee-lined for the bathroom so he could get dressed in private. Since it was summer he wanted to stick with something light and casual, but because it was a date he did want to go with a slightly more fancy look. So to combine the two he went with a pair of blue jeans, and a crimson colored button up shirt. Undoing the top two buttons Issei smiled as he watched himself in the mirror while he rolled his sleeves up. He left the shirt untucked, and grinned even more. It wasn't until he left the bathroom and ran into his adoptive father that he remembered he wanted to wear his silver watch.

Just as he adjusted it to fit snugly around his wrist Tiamat had opened the door so he could see Sona. Smiling softly he held his hand out to her. As she took it he spoke, his words causing the glasses wearing girl to blush.

"No matter what you wear you look fantastic, but this… this takes my breath away."

Tiamat rolled her eyes at the corny line, though she did have to give him credit, as her master gave an honest and sincere opinion of his fiancee's appearance. Shaking her head she told the two to leave for their date already. The two devils left, but not before thanking the blue haired dragon in human form another time. Since Issei's home was not too far from the festival grounds the two had a short five minute walk to get to the festival.

"So what do you want to do first?"

Issei asked, not really sure what to do while on a date at a festival.

Sona wasn't really sure either so she glanced around. As she did the first thing that caught her eye was a stand for catching goldfish. Thanks to her affinity with water, she was drawn to it as an ice breaker for their date. Issei having seen her eyes light up when she saw the stand just chuckled.

"You want me to catch a few goldfish for you? Okay let's head over there."

He spoke as she returned her attention to him to point the stand out. She nodded her head somewhat eagerly, though once she caught on to the fact he said he'd catch them for her she blushed. Shaking it off however she reached out and wrapped her hands around his left arm, and the two made their way towards it.

The stand was being run by an elderly man, who's hair had faded to a light and wispy gray. He smiled as the teens approached, and hit the nail on the head with his statement.

"Brought your girlfriend to the festival on a date eh? I'll let you play for free this time."

Issei was shocked by the fact the older man was willing to let him have a free round.

"Are you sure sir? I have more than enough for tonight."

"It's fine sonny. Seeing all the young couples at this festival brings back happy memories for me. Letting them have a go for free, is just my way of thanking them for reminding me of those days."

The gray haired man responded with a bright smile. Issei and Sona bowed their heads to the elderly man. After being handed the bowl and paper net Issei crouched low and asked Sona to point out which goldfish she wanted him to catch. Since his net was made from paper he only had a limited amount of time he could use it, and the fish were larger than normal for these games.

Not only that, but to make it more interesting it seems the old man had gathered a few different varieties of goldfish. While she looked at the fish she saw the common goldfish that were the standard catch with these games, but there were a few lionhead, comet, fantail, and pearlscale breeds as well. There was even a black telescope variant as well.

Looking over the fish, despite the different breeds they weren't really standing out to her. Not until the young devil saw a comet variety that's scales were entirely red. She pointed to it instantly after seeing it, and Issei very carefully scooped it up. Because it was a little larger than normal he had a harder time catching it, so once he did the paper net was nearly done for. He'd be able to catch one more if he was fast enough, but Sona didn't see another one that interested her so he just declared that he was done.

Smiling the elderly man that was running the stand prepared a bag of water for the teens to carry their prize in. Once the left the stand the two just wondered around the festival grounds. There were a few other games that they played but since they were just trying to have fun Issei and Sona didn't try hard enough to win them. At least not until they came across the stand with the shooting game. One of the prizes was a massive blue dragon stuffed animal. Said stuffed animal reminded the two teens of Tiamat's dragon form, and they knew that they had to win it.

Stepping up to the stand Issei placed his money on the counter, grabbed one of the pop cap guns and took aim. According to the man running the stand Issei had to hit ten targets and not just knock them down, but to hit them dead center as well if he wanted to win the dragon stuffed animal. The reason the extra challenge was tacked on was that the dragon was the grand prize from the stand.

Taking a calming breath, Issei lined up his first shot. Letting his instincts guide him he fired, and quickly adjusted his aim to the next target fired, and continued through all ten targets. The moment he finished the guy running the stand checked the bulls-eyes on the targets only to be shocked that Issei had pulled the challenge off on the first try. With a groan the man handed the grand prize over to Issei who turned to Sona with a massive grin, one that was echoed on her face.

After that the two devils had decided they'd had enough of walking around and returned to Issei's home to drop off their prizes. Adding the goldfish to the aquariam that Sona kept in their room, they searched for Tiamat. Cheekily smiling as they handed the dragon stuffed animal to Tiamat, the teens returned to the festival ground in order to find a spot to watch the fireworks that were going to be set off at the end of the night.

It didn't take long, they found a nice hill with a gentle slope that they could lean back and lay down on. Which they did, though as the night started to cool down Sona rolled over onto Issei's arm and snuggled into his chest.

"Thanks for tonight Issei. I had fun."

"So did I. But I always have a good time when I'm with you."

Sona blushed at his words for the umpteenth time that night. But she was still able to respond.

"I feel the same way."

Turning his head, Issei moved to kiss his fiancee, just in time for the fireworks to start. But neither one minded missing the first moment of the show, both caught up in each other.

 **The next day**

Issei and Sona had drifted home after the fireworks were over and collapsed into bed. But rather than fall asleep right away Issei lay in bed as he held Sona close and thought about where he and his peerage were going to be while in the Underworld. The deciding factor was the fact that as he lay there he remembered a promise to his little brother Millicas to spend more time with him.

When it came time to get wake up and get ready Issei spoke with Sona about it, though he did promise her that he would spend time with her as well, especially given the fact he didn't think he'd take being seperated from her for very long very well.

"That's fine Ise… It might even make it easier for you to figure out a dream to share with the other devils our age."

Sona commented in reply to his statement about heading to the Gremory clans territory with Rias instead of the Sitri clans territory with her. As she spoke the female devil moved to the bathroom to get ready for the day, Issei having woken up first was just getting dressed when she awoke.

"What do you mean by that Sona?"

Issei quipped raising his voice a little so he could still be heard clearly through the now closed bathroom door.

"Well… My parents aren't the most… reliable sort when it comes to helping decide what **you** want to do. But lord Gremory, and his wife? They should be able to help you figure it out."

"I guess that makes sense. Anyway my peerage is ready so we'll head out now. I'll see you after a bit."

Issei replied as he moved to the night stand by his bed and grabbed his cell phone. Every since it was revealed that he was a devil to his adoptive parents he'd been given more leeway with being away from home, but he still had to keep in contact with them. Because it was still early for them to be up he figured the better idea would be to take his phone and let them call him when they wanted updates.

Sighing Issei left his bedroom and moved to the living room with his peerage and his familiars. As they finished gathering Issei activated his magic to teleport them to the Occult Research Clubs club-room to join Rias and her peerage.

"Good morning Issei, Koneko, Zoephiel, Kalawarner, Bova, Garran. Oh and you to Tawni and Tiamat."

Rias greeted cheerfully. Everyone else followed suit, before the red headed devil corralled everyone's attention. She explained that rather than just teleport in like normal, it had been arranged for them to take a train to the Gremory territory. Something she and Issei both privately thought was a way to show Issei more of the territory than just the Gremory mansion. How they were sure Issei would travel with Rias instead of Sona, neither teen was sure of.

Luckily for the teens, with such a large group it was easy to stay distracted and time flew by. As the only person from Issei's peerage to have been to the Gremory territory Koneko was the only one that didn't gasp in awe of the mansion when they arrived.

"Geez, this place is even larger than dad when he uses his full sized form!"

"… I… I can't find the words."

"Even master Mephisto's home pales in comparison."

Bova, Zoephiel, and Garran spoke after recovering. Though Bova whistled before his comment was made. Rias took pride at their reactions, mostly because after teaming up with Issei and Sona for so many things she was not only forgiven but outside of her joint control over Kuoh being taken away all of her other punishments had been lifted and it was back to being certain that she was the next head of the Gremory clan.

Ushering everyone inside Rias, Issei, and Koneko were all tackled by a short red haired boy who was happy to see them.

"Auntie Rias! Big bro, big sis!"

They all chuckled at his excitement, and the confusion of Zoephiel, Kalawarner, and Garran about the identity of the small boy. Bova already knew about Millicas since he was a devil before being part of Issei's peerage.

Issei went to explain things, but before he got a word out, a figure was spotted out of corner of his eye and he raced over to the person for a hug.

"Mama!"

Shaking her head at Issei's antics, Rias took over telling his peerage the details about Millicas and Grayfia. But the commotion wasn't over, as Issei's shout for Grayfia drew the attention of Zeoticus and his wife Venelana who greeted their daughter and grandson happily.

"It's good to see you again Issei! Oh, but before I forget, your father is busy with work right now so he'll be home later. He does have something to talk to you about when he gets home though."


	28. Devilish Politics

S.R: I don't really have anything to say other than please enjoy…..

* * *

Issei and his peerage spent the rest of the day exploring the Gremory mansion, once he calmed down from seeing his family. After they finished their tour, Issei and his peerage decided to enjoy the nice weather by spending some time in the garden. Millicas wanting to spend time with Issei and Koneko since he hadn't seen the two in a while followed them excitedly telling them about how things had been for him.

When Sirzechs finally arrived, he had to take a picture as he smiled to himself. Issei and Millicas had coaxed Grayfia into taking the rest of the day off and just spending time with them. After finding them in the garden Sirzechs was extremely happy with the sight.

Grayfia was leaning against a large oak tree with Millicas in her lap. He had fallen asleep so his head was on her shoulder, but facing Issei who was sprawled out on the grass next to the two also napping. Grayfia had one arm wrapped around her youngest holding him close, as her other carded through her oldest son's hair, a smile gracing her lips. Less than a foot away, and laying in the sunlight was Koneko. She had curled up into a ball just like a cat, but even from the doorway Sirzechs could hear her contented purring as she sunbathed.

A short distance off from the tree was a pergola, under which Issei's bishops Zoephiel and Garran were sitting and drinking tea, talking softly so as not to wake their king. Then around 50 feet off from there in the large open space Issei's last two peerage members were running laps, both seemingly eager to burn their energy.

Softly walking towards his family with a comfortable smile on his face Sirzechs gently sat down beside his wife, quickly giving her a peck on the check in greeting. She rolled her eyes, but smiled non the less. Even though he did have something to talk about with Issei, he decided it could wait as he wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders and pulled her towards him.

An hour later Rias, who was asked to find everyone and inform them of dinner being ready was the one to reluctantly intrude on the scene. Everyone gathered as she led them to the dinning room and a pleasant dinner was had. Only once it had finished did Sirzechs decide to have a chat with his oldest son.

"Issei, before you go I need to have a talk with you."

He spoke, Issei nodding in response. Zeoticus just told the two to use his study for their chat, already having an idea of what they would be discussing. The moment the door was shut Sirzechs asked his son.

"Sona and Rias have told you about the youth meeting right?"

"Yeah, it's in a few days. The three of us and some other high class devils our age will be special guests… From the way they explained it seems like it's the devils equivalent of a graduation ceremony."

"For the most part. But there's a bit more to it… You could also say it's a gathering of the young nobles of devil society."

"Why nobles? I mean yeah Sona told me about how hard it is for the devils to repopulate, but surely there are more high class devils around our age."

Despite expecting the question Sirzechs still flinched at it. Sighing he gave the simple explanation.

"It's not that they don't exist… You see, not all clans are open and build relationships like the Gremory and the Sitri clans. This meeting is more for the benefit of the heirs of the clans. It allows them to meet the other heirs and start making their own opinions and thoughts about things."

"I see… But then why would I be attending? I'm not the heir for the Gremory, that's Rias."

Issei spoke confusion clear on his face.

"There are quite a few reasons for you to attend. 1. so when I announce the return of my oldest son, you are there as proof. 2. So when your engagement with Sona is announced, you are once again there as proof. And 3. Azazel has been invited as a guest and he's bringing Vali. If someone irks him, we'll need you to help calm him down."

Sirzechs tried to explain.

"No, I figured that out already… Let me rephrase. How am I attending the meeting then? Am I someone's guest?"

"Ah… About that…. Outside of the other Satans and myself no one can bring a guest outside of their peerage."

"Okay then, So I'm attending as Sona's Rook."

Issei responded though he had a feeling his father was going to correct him.

"Not quite… You see, because of your power it'd be strange for you to attend as part of her peerage. Especially when the others would be sure to look down on you for it… I know we talked about it back when we first found you but… In order for the youth meeting to go smoothly You'll have to attend as the head to the Lucifuge family."

"Um…. How would that work? Mama is the last living member of the Lucifuge clan right?"

"The current clan heads and the Devil Council already know about your return. It's the rest of the devils that don't, and the council wants us to make it a flashy announcement. So tomorrow they will be announcing the return of the Lucifuge clan with you as the head. But you'll still need to be on an even playing field with the other youth devils so after that we're going to try to make the Lucifuge clan part of the pillars."

Hearing Sirzechs answer, Issei's mind raced, though it didn't take him long to realize why they Devil Council wanted to do things this way. With a sigh Issei just responded to his father.

"Politics are stupid."

Privately agreeing with his son Sirzechs gave a small smile at the words.

"The old fools just don't seem to understand that greatness came come from anyone."

Their conversation now concluded the two devils exited the study they'd been using to talk and returned to the others, choosing to enjoy the night.

When everything finally settled down and it was time to turn in Issei made sure to call his human parents back in Kuoh. They asked about how his day had been and he told them about how much everyone enjoyed themselves. Though he glossed over his talk with Sirzechs, giving them a simplified version.

"Basically the Devil Council are too prideful and feel that 'the clans are superior'. Because of that they want to rub my bloodline in the face of all the non noble blooded devils."

"That's ridiculous!"

"I know... But since they're the ones in charge that's what's happening. It's politics."

"Oh my! It's almost midnight. You should probably go to bed already Ise. We're going to turn in too."

"Okay. Night mom, night dad."

"Goodnight son"

With the phone call over, Issei followed his parents lead and went to bed.

 **The next day**

After waking up and doing his normal morning routine Issei was met by his father and Ajuka. on his way to breakfast.

"Good morning Issei."

"Hello again Issei. I hope this morning has been good so far."

"Hi papa, hi uncle Ajuka."

Sirzechs and Ajuka smiled at Issei's happy attitude, both hoping he'd still be in a good mood later in the day after all the attention he'd be getting.

"Since we're going to announce the return of the Lucifuge clan, we figured it'd be a better idea to do the actual inheritance ceremony now when there's less eyes on you."

Ajuka spoke getting right to the point. Issei nodded his head saying that sounded like a great idea. So the two Satans directed Issei to kneel. As he did Ajuka used his magic to summon a ceremonial blade.

Tapping it on Issei's shoulders as if he were knighting him Ajuka spoke.

"I Ajuka Beelzebub, with the power granted to me by the title of Satan hereby grant you Issei Takumi Lucifuge Gremory Hyoudou the land, wealth, and possessions of the former Lucifuge clan. You may rise."

Standing once Ajuka finished speaking Issei felt a weird swirl of magic centering on his left hand. Glancing at it, he saw a golden streak of light expanding around his pinkie. The light dimmed after a moment and revealed a golden ring. Etched into the ring was a symbol Issei didn't instantly know.

"That signet ring, is a ring worn by Lucifuge Rofocale the original head of the Lucifuge family and one of the most fanatical servants of the original Lucifer…. With this you are now the head of the Lucifuge family. When you're ready just ask Lord Gremory to show you to the lands you now own. When you've finished exploring there he'll take you to the Devil Councils meeting hall. Since you'll have the backing of the Gremory and the Sitri you should be able to convince them to make the Lucifuge family into a pillar family rather than one of the extra demon families."

Ajuka explained before he and Sirzechs took their leave. Sighing Issei continued on into the dinning hall to get breakfast. Thanks to the delay from the two Satans he was the last person to arrive. Luckily his grandfather knew about things so he didn't have to say anything about why he was late. Though his peerage was eager to explore so he quickly ate his meal and had Zeoticus guide him to their new territory.

Once they got close enough Zeoticus began to speak.

"The clan hasn't had a head since the Devil Civil War so the territory was sealed. Now that you've been acknowledged as the new head you can dispel the barrier. After that we'll be free to teleport in an out rather than just to the edge of the land."

"Thanks grandpa. If you want you can go back and relax until we finish looking around."

"Nope. After you unseal the place I plan to have a few servants teleport in to be your new staff. You'll always be welcome in Gremory territory but this is your land so you might as well live here while in the Underworld."

Nodding at Zeoticus's words Issei stepped forward. Now that he was in front of the group he raised his signet ring to the barrier.

"I am the new Lord Lucifuge. I command this barrier to open!"

He chanted letting his power flare just a bit. As his power touched the barrier it trembled before dissipating. Since he was in front Issei was the first person to set foot in his new territory. After walking through the gate he was treated to an awe inspiring sight. Even though the land had been sealed off, everything was still in amazing condition, and the greenery that was the front lawn was still vibrant and full of life.

The hedges that lined the road were still smooth and even. In the center of the front lawn was a massive water fountain. Standing on a pedestal in the center of the fountain was a statue carved from ever frozen ice. The statue being a man with 12 wings surrounding him. His hands where in clasped over the pommel of a very beautiful sword. Said sword seemed to exude magic.

"Ajuka did mention that the original head of the Lucifuge clan was a fanatical servant to the original Lucifer..."

Issei mumbled after seeing the statue, his peerage hearing his words with shock outside of Kalawarner who vaguely remembered the man from her time as a soldier for the fallen-angels in the Great War. Not long after that the servants that Zeoticus was going to have staff the home for Issei arrived and introduced themselves.

"Well it's nice to meet you all. I don't really have much to say at the moment since this is as far as I've gotten in looking around."

"That is alright sir. If you do have anything you desire to change, please just ask."

The head butler responded as he bowed. Nodding his head, Issei said he would let the man know if something came to mind.

"Well why don't we go inside now?"

Garran spoke, eager so see what other magnificent displays of magic he could find besides the statue in the fountain. Agreeing with his bishop Issei and the others entered the mansion. The foyer was different to what everyone expected. Rather than having two curved staircases leading up to the upper floors there was one massive set of stairs set across from the entryway. One the first floor alone there were 4 doors. Because they wanted to see every room Issei's peerage stuck with him as they went to the left most door first.

It lead to a rather large hallway that housed three different rooms. The first of which seemed to be set up for an alchemist or an enchanter to use as a work shop. Garran smiled as he claimed the room to be his work space. The next room they came across was a library. Thanks to the dust covering the books due to the long time spent unoccupied they couldn't see any titles, though they were at least able to tell how many books there were inside the room. The final room they came to in what they realized to be the western wing was a smithy. The smithy also had access to the front lawn, a walkway leading to a storage shed, which was home to the fuel for the forge and the materials that could be forged.

Returning to the entry the group moved to the eastern wing. Once again there were three rooms, one was a massive pantry. The next was the actual kitchen, and the last room was… Well it was a dinning room, but it was set up with a bar so Issei figured it was supposed to be a room for entertaining guests.

Back tracking to the entry Issei led his peerage through the closest of the last two doors. The room they had entered was a massive ballroom. The back half of the room was lined with windows and a few doors. On both sides of the room were two atrium's that the doors lead to. While the back wall housed one set of doors leading to a balcony that overlooked the back half of the property. As they looked around the massive room the teens noticed that the last door from the entry way also lead to the ballroom. They took note of a two small staircases in the front corners of the room. Taking the closer set of stairs they discovered that the second floor was a walkway with rails so you could look down on the party while taking a break from dancing, with several tables and chairs scattered about. There was also a massive set of doors that lead back to the front hall's staircase.

The second floor of the front hall housed several bathrooms, two sets of stairs leading up to a third floor, and doors that lead back into the wings. Exploring the second floor of the west wing they learned that it was home to what the plaque above the door labeled as the 'servants quarters'. The second floor for the east wing was home to a sitting room, the study, and a private library that was connected to the study. Moving up to the third floor they found two dozen bedrooms including the master bedroom and another 6 bathrooms.

Since Zeoticus told Issei that this was his home so he might as well use it, Issei called for the head butler, who's name was Sebastian.

"Sebastian. My peerage and I will be living here while we are in the Underworld. Would you have someone bring our things? Of course as the head of the clan the master bedroom is mine, but I believe my peerage have already selected their rooms."

"Right away sir. I'll just go make the rounds to label the rooms so the others know where to put everyone's belongings."

"Thank you Sebastian."

With a nod the butler was off. Using his magic to create a communication circle Issei contacted his peerage.

"Alright guys, I'm going to step out for a bit. There's a few more things I need to do as the head of the clan. I should be back shortly."

Since his grandfather was still standing beside him after he let his peerage know, all he had to do was turn to the red headed man and nod. Smiling at his grandson Zeoticus activated his magic and teleported the two to the Devil Council's meeting chamber.

Because Sirzechs wanted Issei to convince the council to make the Lucifuge clan a pillar family, all of the current pillar family heads had to attend the meeting, which meant Issei had to wait outside while his grandfather entered the meeting hall. After around half an hour of waiting he was allowed to enter.

"We thank you for appearing before us, Issei. The council has acknowledged you as the head of the Lucifuge family, and we look forward to working with you."

A man spoke up, giving a speech that he would give to everyone who claims the title of family head. Issei bowed as thanks for the welcome. He went to open his mouth but another person spoke up.

"As we are all well aware of the fact that you are Sirzechs lost son returned, I'd like to ask that you skip the introduction you were likely about to give us."

This time it was a woman that spoke, at least if he could tell by the voice. Other than the 4 Satans that were presiding over the meeting Issei couldn't accurately see anyone well enough to figure out who was speaking.

"If that is what you wish… Then I'll be blunt. I didn't really want to do any of this, I'm just going along with it since this is politics. You all probably already know that I'm here to ask for the Lucifuge family to be made into a pillar clan."

"While it is true we knew this, I would like to remind you that manners are still important."

Another devil spoke up. Issei just nodded his head at the words.

"Since this is a matter of status, the pillar clans must put your request to a vote. Should it pass we the Devil council are allowed to agree or veto the pillar's decision. But I'll say this right now. If the clans agree, the council has already decided to allow it."

With that said the heads of the pillar clans began speaking and debating it. Of course the Gremory and Sitri clans instantly agreed to it. But many more had to agree still. Despite the fact a little less than half of the original 72 pillars remain, two yeses was not enough to mean a guarantee.

Back and forth the debate went, several others pitching their votes. Withing the first two minutes of discussion Issei had the Gremory, Sitri, Bael, Belial, and Agares clans had all voted yes. On the other hand the Piamon, Barbatos, and Sallos clans voted no.

"Really, what reason do we have to add the Lucifuge family to the pillar clans. I mean there must be a reason they weren't one of the original 72."

One of the clan heads spoke, which caused another to sigh.

"You really are an idiot Uvall. The Lucifuge family isn't a pillar family because their head wasn't a general in the army, instead being the head of Lucifer's personal guard. Their family duty was to protect Lucifer after all."

"But why wouldn't he have the family do that now too?"

"Because the Lucifuge family died out after Lord Lucifer's wife married him. Issei is going to revive the family. It's a rebirth for that line. Why should they have to stick with that job?"

With that last statement made a few more clan heads saw fit to vote, bringing the total vote from 8 to 15. Of which nine were for allowing Issei to make the Lucifuge family into a pillar clan. The room started to echo as the debate got louder and louder. At least until someone coughed.

"I say let them be a clan family. The kids got the power to make it happen."

"Beleth's right. The boy is indeed strong enough."

"Sure, let's make the Lucifuge family a pillar clan, then when things are put to a vote between the pillar clans Gremory has a second vote in his pocket!"

"Nonsense!"

finally after ten minutes had passed another group of clan heads voted. Out of the thirty three clan heads, twenty two had voted. Eleven saying yes and eleven saying no.

"You know what? I'm for it. I owe the kid for knocking some sense into my son."

A voice spoke out.

"Are you sure Lord Phenex? Normally you'd be vehemently against something like this?"

"I owe the boy. The least I can do is put in a good word."

Several others voted with Lord Phenex at that point.

"I must remind you all that this issue cannot be considered settled until all votes have been cast. The rule has always been 'even if the remaining votes cannot change the result they must be cast.' So speak up."

A council member spoke up trying to hurry things along. After that the last few votes spoke up. In the end Issei had 21 of the 33 clans agreeing to allow the Lucifuge clan to be a pillar clan.

"Now then. With the votes cast, the majority agreed to the request. As I have said earlier the council has already decided that we would grant this request if it made it this far… That means another congratulations is in order for Lord Lucifuge. The Devil Council welcomes you to the pillars."

 **Hours later**

Issei tiredly activated his magic circle to teleport home. After the vote to make the Lucifuge family a pillar clan Issei was forced to attend the public announcement and then sit through several interviews. After those were done he was dragged off to a welcoming 'party', which was really just his grandfather Lord Gremory introducing him to the other pillar clans head members. It was a whirlwind of events that left the teen longing for bed.

As he arrived in his new bedroom he was greeted with a hug. Apparently Sona's father had been in on the plan and had informed his daughter so he didn't have to explain anything to her. Sona could tell that Issei just wanted to sleep, so she led him to the bed and started to removed his shoes for him.

"Please don't make me do anything like that again."

Issei spoke out loud, half praying that he and Sona wouldn't have to endure interviews about their relationship after it was publicly announced.

"I'll try not to."

Sona responded as she got herself ready for bed. Issei summoned the last dregs of his energy to at least take his shirt and socks off, before flopping back down onto the bed. A couple minutes later Sona was beside him and he wrapped his arms around her as she snuggled into him. It didn't take much more than five minutes for the two to begin drifting off to sleep.

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S.R: How's that for a plot twist?


	29. Meeting The Other Youths

S.R: You guys didn't hear this from me but…. The Pokemon Story my wife and I are working on will be updated tomorrow. Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Okay with that out of the way it's time to continue with our High School DxD excursion (I was bribed to mention it since it got delayed due to "reasons." Don't ask).

Friendly reminder since I'm too lazy to check how long it's been since the last one. I do not own High School DxD or any of these characters outside of the OCs. I don't own the idea behind this story either, it was first thought up by **FunahoMisaki** so go check out their version of the story as well.

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After taking over as head of the Lucifuge clan Issei had very little free time to spend with his friends and family. Despite doing several interviews almost immediately after obtaining the status of a pillar family for the clan he still had more to do. However he did have help from his grandfather Zeoticus Gremory, in managing things and learning all of the important things he would need to know as a clan head.

The only good news is that Issei, his father Sirzechs, and soon to be sister in law (or just sister as she preferred him to call her) Serafall had convinced the Sitri and Gremory heads to delay announcing his engagement to Sona until the Youth Devils Conference. The major reason Issei felt that to be his crowning achievement since becoming head of the Lucifuge family was that it kept the number of interviews down, which meant he spent more time with learning how to lead the Lucifuge as the head of the house than he did in interviews about himself becoming the head of the family.

Because it was well known at this point that Issei had heritage from the Gremory clan no one raised a fuss when Zeoticus stepped in to help manage the estate, though Lord Sitri contributed aid as well but since they didn't want the Underworld to know of their connections just yet it was kept quiet.

Another plus for the teen was that in doing all he could to prepare his house, he figured out a dream he could share and announce at the Youth Devils Conference. Since he had stable connections with the angels and fallen-angels Issei had decided that his goal would be to take over as one of the 4 Satan's and follow in Serafall's footsteps as the head of Foreign Affairs.

"So my Lord, do you think you're ready for tonight?"

His head butler Sebastian asked him as Issei stood in the grand entryway waiting for the females of his peerage to finish their preparations for the night. Since the young devils attending the meeting were all nobles, and it was to be held in a very high class establishment, they were all going in formal wear.

Because of the importance of the meeting Bova was even using his magic to take a fully human appearance.

Bova's human form being a more sturdy built version of Garran, but his eyes were similar to Issei's with vertical lizard slit like pupils. However Issei's were a nice violet with golden flecks scattered throughout, Bova's were a glowing amber in color. His hair was a coppery red, but just a touch brighter making it look like a slightly more reddish carrot.

The three boys were dressed similarly, though each had a few key differences based off their personalities. Nice black leather shoes and black slacks were all that the three had on that matched.

Bova, was wearing a bright red button up shirt, with the sleeves un-cuffed and rolled up. He left the top three buttons undone, showing just a hint of his bare chest and the collar was folded up. This was the most Issei and the other could get him to agree to, when it came to formal wear as he really didn't like it.

Garran was wearing a more subdued icy blue button up. Since he actually preferred to dress nicely, he had a nice black jacket on over top, but left open along with just the top button of his shirt undone. A simple yet shiny silver roll-ex watch adorned his left wrist. Stuffed nice and neatly inside his suit jacket's chest pocket was a folded up handkerchief.

In Issei's case he had on a bluish green button up shirt, with a black vest. He had chosen to go with a silver tie, and a silver pocket watch was placed inside the vests right hand pocket. On top of that to add just a splash of red to represent Ddraig, Issei had a red rose adornment on the left side of his chest, just above his heart. Because it was a warm night Issei also had his sleeves rolled up, but no where near as high as Bova had his rolled up. Issei was also wearing the golden signet ring of the Lucifuge clan on his left pinkie like normal.

As Issei finished his assessment of himself and his two companions he finally responded to the older man.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be. I do appreciate your help and concern over this though Sebastian. Your aid has been extremely helpful and I'm not sure I'd have managed to get as much done as I have without you."

"Think nothing of it my Lord. During my tenure as part of the staff in the Gremory home, I was treated as family, and you've done your best to make sure that myself and all of the other staff are treated just as we were before. It is our pleasure to aid you when we can in return for such kindness and friendship."

Sebastian replied just in time for Koneko, Zoephiel, and Kalawarner to descend down the staircase.

Issei smiled at them as he took in their dresses. Koneko had decided to wear a familiar dress, it was the one she had worn the night that Sona and Issei held their engagement dinner parties with their families. Her hair was also brushed differently than normal. Instead of having two large strands of hair frame her face, they were pulled up and tucked over her forehead in the same direction so as to cause the fringe to partially cover one eye.

Zoephiel, had found a nice halter dress that matched the color of her eyes. Around both wrists she wore silver bracelets. To match her bracelets Zoephiel had used a silver crescent moon shaped hair clip to hold her long hair up a bit. Instead of letting it lay flat and cascade down her back, she used the silver hair clip to layer her hair so that it gently brushed her shoulders without flaring over them. Because she was comfortable with showing her skin, the former fallen-angel wore no other jewelry, letting the open dress accent her form enough to were she could draw attention without the shiny accessories.

In Kalawarner's case, she was truly different than normal. Her long flowing navy blue hair was pulled up and braided into several different braids, which wound around each other in such a way that the largest one was in the middle with four smaller ones being wound into it, and then two even smaller ones, one on either side of the larger braid. Her normal maroon business suit type outfit was replaced with a form fitting, backless dress that was a vibrant and stunning green in color.

"Well then are we all ready?"

He asked as the three finally joined Bova, Garran and I at the front door. Nods and voices of agreement came from everyone, but when they stepped out the door the group was greeted by Bova's father Tannin.

"Good evening Lord Lucifuge. Since it is a special occasion and I have already met you and your peerage I was asked to be your escort to the conference."

He spoke in a polite tone, with mostly formal wording. That meant he was going along with all the pomp and circumstance of the situation, so Issei had to act accordingly.

"I thank you good sir. Shall we be off then?"

He spoke, though everyone around me could tell he was annoyed with the formalities of it all already. Tannin merely nodded his head as he ordered the dragons he had brought with him to allow the young devils on their backs.

A short while later saw the teens walking through the entrance to the massive dinning room that the Youth Devils Conference would be taking place in. Thankfully for Issei they arrived at the same time as both Rias and Sona.

Sona had on a lovely blue dress that clung to her figure, and had no back to it. She had blue flowers, just a touch darker than her dress adorning her hair. The girls of her peerage were all dressed similarly. But Rugal and Shin wore outfits similar to Issei's though they both were in standard white and black for the color scheme.

Rias on the other hand had on the stereotypical black dress. Her queen Akeno wore the same dress only in red. Kiba was dressed similarly to Garran, while Matsuda and Motohama were dressed more like Bova. As for Gasper… Well he wore a black version of Koneko's dress, though his skirt was slightly longer than hers.

"Well, that's some coincidental timing would you say Sona?"

Rias spoke as Issei and his peerage approached. Sona couldn't say anything though, Issei stealing her attention with his looks. In her mind she felt that Issei always looked good, but when it came time for formal attire she would never get used to how handsome he was. Rias rolled her eyes at her friends absentmindedness as she greeted her nephew and his peerage. It wasn't until Issei offered Sona his arm to escort her in that she finally came back to reality.

As they entered the building a commotion was heard in the distance that caused Rias and Sona both to sigh.

"I beat we know who the root of all this is."

Rias spoke with a wry smile on her face.

"Of course we do. It couldn't be anybody else after all."

Sona replied, as Issei and his peerage looked on confused.

There were two figures arguing a few feet in front of them. One was a man with dark skin, that had a slight red tinge to it. His eyes were black, and his hair a slight greenish blue. Sideways M shaped markings adored his cheeks just below his eyes. He was wearing a deep red shirt with a blue jacket over top. Black slacks protecting his legs.

The other a woman with long blonde hair. Her pink eyes shielded by glasses. She was wearing a blue robe like jacket, that reminded the group of the style coat merchants use to wear. There was even the ruffled maroon ascot to go with it.

"Zephyrdor."

Rias and Sona groaned when the saw the man. He was harassing the girl with vulgar language.

"Oh come on Seekvaira, all you need to loosen up is a good and rough pounding. Ain't no need for you to stay a geeky virgin any longer, and I know you'd be hooked on my co-"

"Do you have a death wish Zephyrdor?"

She cut him off with a cold glare.

"Seriously? A virgin bitch like you is turning me down? The fuck is wrong with you?"

"A low class cretin like yourself couldn't get a lady like me even if you drugged her Zephyrdor."

the girl identified as Seekvaira taunted coolly.

"Why you bitch!"

Zephyrdor yelled, a fist being pulled back to strike her.

At that point Issei stepped in, but he wasn't alone. Another teen stepped up beside him. This second male had dark hair that stuck out on one side, but other than that looked pretty nice and formal in a simple tuxedo.

Issei just glared at the teen that they had stopped from assaulting the blonde. His draconic energies rolling off of him with a threatening intent, which caused the darker skinned boy to to recoil slightly.

Issei's companion in ending the argument had a hand wrapped around Zephyrdor's wrist a vice grip causing the hand to twitch as the blood flow was cut off.

"The fuck do you assholes want?"

He tried to taunt Issei and the newcomer. Issei just sighed and focused his glare on Zephyrdor who's body suddenly went limp, causing him to be held up but the wrist that the other male still had a hold of.

"You know better than to treat women that way."

The boy spoke, before tossing Zephyrdor, even though it was a simple toss Issei could tell there was a lot of power behind the movements as Zephyrdor was thrown across the room and into a seat. That promptly broke and collapsed beneath him.

With Zephyrdor dealt with Issei turned to the blonde and offered a hand as he noticed in their rush to defend her, she had been thrown to the ground.

"I'm sorry about that. Are you alright?"

"Yes, thank you for the assistance. Thank you too Sairoarg."

"If Zephyrdor causes any more problems let me know alright?"

The now identified Sairoarg spoke.

Issei nodded in agreement.

"I will… Now, I don't recall ever meeting you before."

Seekvaira mentioned as she turned to Issei.

At that point Rias and Sona decided to make themselves known, offering greetings to their friends. Though in Rias's case she greeted Sairoarg as family since the two are cousins.

"To answer your question Seekvaira, this is Issei. He is the one the news has been talking about lately. The new head of the Lucifuge clan."

"Okay then, so you're my long lost cousin that was recently found."

Sairoarg commented after hearing Sona's explanation.

"Oh, it's a pleasure to meet you Lord Lucifuge."

Seekvaira stated as she gave a polite bow to Issei.

"It's a pleasure meeting the two of you as well. Also please just call me Issei. I'm still not used to being the head of the Lucifuge family yet."

"then you may just call me Seekvaira."

"We're cousins so I don't mind what you call me Issei."

Seekvaira and Sairoarg replied though Sairoarg offered his hand for a handshake as he spoke.

"Anyway. I have to ask, why is it you were the one to answer my question Sona? How do you already know him?"

"Well… That's a long story. Suffice it to say, one of the announcements that will be made tonight will be my explanation as to how I already know him Seekvaira."

Around that time, Issei was finally spotted by another of the guests to the meeting. Azazel was with Sirzechs from the start, and Vali wasn't allowed to stray too far from them until Issei arrived to distract him.

"Oh there you are Issei."

Vali called out as he walked up to the group.

"Vali. How have things been since the break started?"

Issei questioned, wanting to know what his gaming rival has been up to.

"Same old same old. Training with Azazel and Baraquiel. Oh, and I've made some progress into controlling JD."

Vali responded, using the code name the two had come up with for Juggernaut Drive. Despite the fact they have transferred the rivalry from fighting to gaming the two agreed to fight each other occasionally to keep their skills up. During the last battle Sirzechs and Azazel had to knock them out as they went a little too far and both of them triggered Juggernaut Drive. The reason that was a problem is that, that form is a berserker state. They give up all control in order to have unrestricted access to the full power they can draw from their Sacred Gears.

They haven't seen each other since then, as their schedules haven't properly lined up again. But they did still find time to chat with each other via online gaming, which is how they came up with the label of JD.

"Um, mind if I ask what you two are talking about? Oh and who are you?"

Sairoarg butted in to the conversation.

"Well I'm the current host to Albion so I am the White Dragon Emperor. Issei is host to Ddraig making him the Red Dragon Emperor. JD is a power we both have but can't fully use yet. Oh and my name is Vali."

"No last name Vali?"

Seekvaira asked as the group was curious. Outside of Issei, none of the teens knew Vali's last name.

"I have some deep seated issues with my family so I don't use my surname anymore."

the conversation would have gone further, but Sirzechs had stepped up to the microphone that was placed in front of the Four Satans. Everyone rushed to take a seat, postponing the talk for later.

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S.R: Okay so I had to make this note here because my wife read the description for the hair style for Kalawarner and she said it's called a "Boho Braid" or something like that. Just in case anyone wanted to see what I was imagining you can look it up and see for yourself.


	30. The Youth Devil Conference

S.R: Yes I know this was a fast update. I felt bad the last one was short, despite the fact I had planned for it to be short. But I still felt bad, so I give you all this chapter too. It might not be cleaned up as much as the others are since I skipped the beta reader this time though.

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Everyone had rushed to take a seat when they noticed Sirzechs had stepped up to the microphone.

"Oh there was no need for you all to rush to your seats. I was just wanting to announce that we are going to delay the Conference a bit as a few VIP guests have yet to arrive."

He spoke, his voice echoing around the room due to the mic. A few sighs were heard in response, as a couple of the peerage kings wanted the meeting to end quickly. One devil though saw it as his opportunity to get close to his targets.

Thanks to his connections he already knew all about Issei being set up in Kuoh alongside Sona and Rias. But he wasn't supposed to know that so he ignored Issei for now in favor of talking to Rias and Sona.

"Hello, Sona. Hello Rias. How are you two doing tonight?"

"We're doing fine Diodora. How have you been?"

Rias responded. Neither she nor Sona particularly liked the young man in front of them, but it was still common courtesy to be nice and return the question when asked.

"I've been well. Anyway I have a question for you two. A few months ago I was in the Human world when I got severely injured in a fight with a fallen-angel. A young blonde nun happened to have been wondering by and healed me. I wanted to thank her for possibly saving my life, but when I went looking for her she was gone. After having her disappearance looked into, I learned she had been transferred to a church in Kuoh."

"You want to know if we've see someone matching that description around town?"

Rias wondered, as she listened to his question.

"Yes. If it helps, I learned that her name is Asia. Asia Argento."

Sona and Issei went wide eyed at the name, both recalling the nun that they had met just before Zoephiel and Kalawarner were made part of Issei's peerage.

"I'm sorry to say this, but she was killed by a fallen-angel for her Sacred Gear. I only know about this, because it was a rogue fallen-angel and both Lady Leviathan and Lord Lucifer had asked my peerage to handle the situation. We did give her a proper burial though."

Sona answered Diodora. He looked shocked for a moment before responding.

"I see… It's a shame I didn't get to thank her. Would you mind if I visited your territory and paid my respects at her grave at least?"

Sona gave a small nod, something about inviting him to Kuoh was giving her a bad feeling though.

At the same time Diodora was studying Issei and his peerage. Despite his connections to the Old Devils Faction, Issei was the only one he could find anything on. The young devil recognized Koneko from Rias's peerage having met her once before, but dismissed her as unimportant. He also recognized Bova as the son of Tannin, who was both a high ranking devil and one of the Dragon Kings. With that in mind he placed Bova a bit higher on his list in terms of who was more dangerous. Garran was relegated to a mid tier threat, between Bova and Koneko after a bit of study.

When his gaze came to the two former fallen-angels in Issei peerage his mind was active. He knew all about Asia's Twilight Healing, having originally planned to have her excommunicated from the church before claiming her as his own peerage member due to his fantasies. But things didn't work in his favor so he wasn't able to move fast enough, so he expected that with the nun's death her Sacred Gear was reincarnated with someone else. But he knew it's power and was able to feel it on Zoephiel. Diodora was curious as to how it came to be in her possession but noted that she'd be a threat on the same level as Koneko. That's to say her ability to make light-spears was the only dangerous thing about her, but her actual power level was so low that the light-spears were not as dangerous as the magic from Garran or Bova's physical might.

But it was the last member of Issei's peerage that interested him the most. The reason being that Issei's last peerage member, Kalawarner, never went anywhere without her sword. It was her most treasured possession, yet at the same time a beacon telling those who could fee it's power what she used to be. The sword gave off a very small aura. That aura being holy in nature, as it was her weapon as a foot solider in heavens army before the Great War. Since she was still able to use it, Diodora pieced together that she had fallen from heaven, and thus still had a little bit of holy power as well.

Adjusting himself Diodora decided it was time to pull back and start plotting, having decided that he'd convince the Old Devils to let him have the one with the holy sword after he dealt with the devils currently living in Kuoh like he was tasked.

"I'm sorry for staring, but I don't recognized any of you."

He commented to Issei as he gestured to his peerage, hoping his statement would offset their suspicion at the fact he went quiet after receiving permission to visit Asia's grave.

"Forgive me for not introducing myself sooner. I am Issei Lucifuge, the current head of the Lucifuge clan. These are my peerage members."

Issei responded, a fake smile on his face as he noticed Diodora's focus on Kalawarner. He brushed it aside though since it wouldn't be right to cause a scene.

"Well met, Lord Lucifuge. I am Diodora Astaroth, the current heir to the Astaroth family. Lord Beelzebub is actually my older brother, but unlike the Gremory family, when Ajuka stepped up most of our family shunned him."

Despite the extra info Diodora offered him Issei didn't really acknowledge Diodora, only offering a hand for a quick handshake. He could tell that he was basically being dismissed without being dismissed so after shaking hands Diodora said he would see them again sometime before walking away. As he left Seekvaira and Sairoarg came back to the trio from Kuoh to continue talking.

One of the topics that was brought up was why Issei was a clan head, when everyone knew that chances were good he would one day take the title of Satan just like his father. Sairoarg was really curious about it since his dream was to take that title too.

Issei gave his best guess for why the Devil Council had wanted it set up this way. That being, the fact that Issei wouldn't challenge his father for the title, only claim it after the older devil retired or passed away. Which meant there would be a long gap of time between now and the time Issei becomes one of the Four Satans. So the council who cares more about noble pride than the devils race itself, would want him to already have a title and position to come from when it happened.

In other words they want him to be a well known noble figure already before he becomes a Satan, just to appease their sense of nobility. Issei just went along with Sirzechs idea to bring the Lucifuge family into prominence as a pillar clan, because it was a way to eventually force change to the way the devils society is run. Though he also felt that it would help Sona in achieving her dream of a school for Rating Games since she'd have another important figure backing her.

Eventually the VIP guest that they were waiting for arrived and Sirzechs began the conference, welcoming all who were attending. He gave a brief speech about why this meeting in particular was going to be a special one, introduced the guests that the Four Satans had invited, and began explaining certain presences at the conference starting with Azazel and Vali.

"Now as a few of you already know, we recently revised the cease fire between the three factions. It is now a proper peace treaty and we are working hand in hand with the angels and fallen-angels. It is why I have invited Azazel, the governor of the fallen-angels. Would you say a few words before I move on to the next guest?"

At that Azazel stood and moved to the mic beside Sirzechs.

"First, I say thank you for extending this invitation. Second I'd like to adress you young devils. Those of you that don't know me may be wary of things. That's perfectly fine, it's hard to adjust and change after centuries of distrust between the factions. But we are all working together now. You don't have to trust us. Not yet, let us earn your trust. But until we do earn that trust, I ask that you be open minded and handle and issues you may have in a civil way. I give my word that we will extend that same courtesy to you… That's why I have asked my assistant here"

He gestured to Vali before continuing.

"To be here with me tonight. He is a very special person in the supernatural world, and a very powerful one at that. So to show you that we want to work together I asked him here tonight to reveal himself."

The moment Azazel said reveal a set white wings with faded blue light making up the 'feathers' slowly expanded from behind Vali's back.

"I am Vali. Due to family issues I do not claim my surname so do not ask about it. If you don't want to call me Vali, then another way you can adress me is as the White Dragon Emperor. Yes I am the host of Albion… Now I know this may be jumping the gun as they say, but one of the reasons I'm here to reveal myself is due to Lord Lucifuge over there."

Vali said as he pointed out Issei.

"A few of you have already learned this but. Lord Lucifuge is host to Ddraig, making him the Red Dragon Emperor, and my supposed rival to the death. BUT that is not true. He and I have talked it over, and we decided to put aside the feud between the dragons we are host to. We are friends and allies… If we, the host of the Heavenly Dragons can ignore the hate and animosity that the previous generations of White and Red Dragon Emperors had for each other, then devils, angels, and fallen-angels can do the same."

Sirzechs let Vali's words wash over the young devils for a moment before he reigned them back in as Vali and Azazel sat back down in their seats. The red headed devil applauded their words before moving on and introducing their other guests.

After finishing that task, he stepped back and let his fellow Satans give their own speeches to the young ones. Serafall going last.

"Now, there are a few more announcements to be made to you all before this Youth Devils Conference is over. However this one is more of a congratulatory announcement, so that you all can be aware of this news before it is released to the public. Lord Lucifuge, Sona would the two of you stand?"

She spoke, her formal tone slipping when she adressed Sona. The two stood as a light was shined on both of them. At this point her formalities were gone as her excitement peaked.

"Issei, Sona congratulations on your engagement!"

She practically screamed into her microphone before rushing towards the two in an attempt to squeeze them with bear hugs. Sirzechs moved towards them as well, causing some confusion as most thought he was going to remind Serafall that it was a formal occasion still. But he instead joined in the hug. Between the two Satans Issei and Sona were struggling to breathe as they had bone crushing strength in their hugs.

"Ahem… For those of you that are confused as to why Lord Lucifer is also hugging the two, I'd like to say you need to pay more attention to the news. Lord Lucifuge is his long lost son that was kidnapped from his cradle years ago."

Ajuka spoke, specifically glaring at Zephyrdor who was really the only one confused at Sirzechs actions.

Eventually Sirzechs and Serafall were pried off the two teens and made to return to their seats so the last segment of the conference could go on.

This time Ajuka was the Satan at the mic, asking each of the peerage kings to stand in turn and state their dream. Zephyrdor, Seekvaira, and Diodora all gave the standard, 'I want to take over as head of my family and lead them to greatness' answers for what their dreams were. Even Rias's dream was a variation on that, though hers wasn't just to lead the Gremory clan but devil kind itself to greater things.

"I want to take a spot as one of the Four Satans!"

Sairoarg announced, pride and conviction evident in his voice.

"It's a long and hard path, but I heard the determination in your voice. I wish you luck Sairoarg."

Ajuka said with a smile, having already realized that Sairoarg would one day achieve that goal.

"As for you young Sitri, what is your dream?"

he inquired of Sona when she stood. Though Ajuka already knew, since he was close friends with her sister after all.

"I want to improve the devils strength overall, by building a school for Rating Games. Not just for the high ranking families, but all devils."

Sairoarg, Seekvaira and Rias all smiled as they applauded their friends dream. Diodora snorted and rolled his eyes not believing she could do it or that it would matter in the slightest but refrained from voicing those doubts. Zephyrdor however was calling her out, rudely saying it was a stupid and worthless dream.

At that Issei couldn't keep silent. Standing up and unleashing his grip on his power slightly he let it cause the rude boy to cower in fear before he spoke.

"It's an admirable dream, so don't you dare laugh at it! Besides I'll help make sure it comes true. If I can't use my power to help her achieve her dreams, then how the hell will I achieve mine of becoming one of the Four Satans and take over as chief of Foreign Affairs?"

He challenged. Daring anyone to speak out against Sona, despite the fact that most of the devils in the room weren't against her dream. Though everyone in the room knew his power would grow to the point he would easily be able to take a spot as one of the Four Satans, so they felt he'd easily be able to help Sona with her goal.

"Just like Sairoarg I can feel the determination from both of you. Once again I wish you luck in your endeavors."

Ajuka commented combining his responses to Sona and Issei. The two nodded their heads at his words before returning to their seats. Ajuka did as well, and it was quiet for a moment, before the last of the Four Satans, Falbium stepped up to speak.

"As we draw closer to the end of this gathering we now come to the final announcement of the evening. In order to help you all grow it has been decided that a few of the restrictions that young devils have shall be lifted off of you all. From now on, you and your peerage may be given a task from we Satans directly instead of it being run through the Devil Council. You all will also have the restrictions about dealing with stray devils in your territories lifted. The third and final change will be that you are allowed to have your own Rating Games. In order for you to fully grasp how Rating Games work we have arranged a few between you all. Once those have all finished you will be allowed to issue challenges to each other, and after a year you will be allowed to challenge any devil to a Rating Game."

Falbium was silent as he expected someone to question him about the rules being changed for them. But he was surprised to see Vali speak up instead.

"If I may. After all of the prearranged Rating Games are finished, would you add me to the list of people that may be challenged? It lets us get a better feel each other's strength."

"I see no issue with that. If someone wishes to challenge you they can."

Falbium responded before things went quiet again. Patiently he waited, until Sairoarg voiced his concern.

"You say you've already arranged Rating Games between us. How so, and against who?"

"Well before I can answer that I have to explain how these changes are going to work for young Sona and Lord Lucifuge. As they have special circumstances that lead to them being part of each other's peerage they can not face each other in a Rating Game. Because of how unbalanced it is, if you have a game against one of their peerages you will not face the other. For example the first game to be held will be Diodora versus Issei. Win or lose Diodora can not have a game against Sona's peerage. That way you do not battle either of them twice."

"As for how the games are arranged, you all will have 5 games. As it is right now we only have your first games set up, so a proper list will be sent to you all within the next few days. The first games are Diodora vs. Issei as I said before, Rias vs. Seekvaira, and Sairoarg vs. Zephyrdor."

With the Rating Games explained Falbium settled back down in his chair so Sirzechs could stand up and do the closing speech. The moment he was done Sairoarg and Seekvaira rushed back over to Issei and Sona both offering their congratulations for the engagement. Though Seekvaira was slightly stiff about it as her worry for her friend seeped into her voice.

"It's alright Seekvaira. I'm not in this engagement against my will."

"Wait, what are you talking about?"

Sairoarg asked, unaware of the terms Sona set with her parents about her engagement.

"I had an engagement once but I weaseled out of it after beating him in chess. After that I made an agreement with my parents that I would only marry someone that could best me in chess. Issei is the first person and only person to do that."

"I see. That's why you two are engaged, and why you told Seekvaira earlier that there would be an announcement to explain why you already knew him."

"Even without that agreement I would still marry Issei. Besides he had no idea about the contract with my parents until much later."

"Here's an idea. Why don't we all head over to the Lucifuge family's mansion so we can tell you guys how it happened and catch up. It's been awhile since we've all gotten together anyway."

Rias suggested, having been planning to visit Issei's new territory herself.

Seekvaira and Sairoarg both agreed to the idea and the five peerage kings, plus their entourage left the meeting hall to travel towards the Lucifuge territory.

While that was going on Diodora was contacting a few of his acquaintances, namely a devil by the name of Shalba. He explained the situation to the older devil.

"Alright then. We'll come up with a plan and inform you about it later. For now your objective is to prepare for the 'game' with that brat."

"Don't kill his two fallen-angel peerage members. I want them as a replacement for that stupid nun."

"You mean the nun with Twilight Healing? Why?"

"She's dead. Apparently a fallen killed her, and now one of the two in his peerage has it. The other seems to be an angel that fell but still has a small amount of Holy power. I'm going to enjoy breaking that bitch."

"We'll see. For now you just need to be on standby. I can't wait to see the look on Sirzechs face when his precious firstborn is dead."

Since Diodora was too wrapped up in his fantasies he never even noticed the nearby presence listening in on the conversation and recording it for later. The moment they sensed it was over the figure left, a strand of white hair falling to the ground as the only proof they were ever there.

 **Meanwhile**

"Welcome to the Lucifuge home."

Issei offered his companions as he lead them to the east wings room for entertaining guests. Privately he called it the 'small party room'.

Rias, and Sona dismissed their peerages telling them they could go do what they wanted now. Issei did the same, a smile on his face as Garran left for his alchemy room, Zoephiel in tow. Kalawarner returned to her room, and Bova decided he wanted to relax so he returned to normal, letting his dragon wings out as he left to go fly for a bit. Koneko curled up in a chair by a fire place Issei had decided to add to the room to give it a more homely feel.

Seekvaira and Sairoarg told their peerages to relax and do whatever, but didn't fully dismiss them since they weren't sure how long they'd be.

"It was almost two years ago now that we first met."

Issei started, intending to tell them about how they grew close.

"It's hard to believe it's been that long… I remember our first chess game though."

"Yeah, school hadn't even started yet so everyone was waiting in the courtyard. You were accepting challengers when Matsuda and Motohama told me about it."

"I remember they were concerned since that was back when your powers were going haywire."

"It wasn't until you and Ajuka revived me that they settled after all."

Issei and Sona went back and forth. It was clear to see they cared for each other, both more focused on reminiscing with each other than actually telling Sairoarg and Seekvaira the story. It took Rias snapping her fingers in front of them to get their attention back on the group.

"Right sorry…. So basically as you know I was kidnapped from my cradle. The person that did it managed to alter my genetics so that my devil powers were dormant and I would seem to be just a regular human. But I got a Sacred Gear and it woke my abilities. The problem is my powers started fighting with the Sacred Gear over which would be my dominant power and it was tearing my body apart."

"Anyway, his friends were concerned for him since it was an 'unknown illness' and he was late to school. But after he assured them he was okay they told him about the fact I was accepting challengers at chess."

"So I sat down and played a game with her. We first met playing chess."

"On top of that you beat me. I was shocked, especially since it meant according to my parents you were my fiancee at that moment. But since you were supposed to be a normal human with no connection to the supernatural I decided to give it some time and see what kind of person you were before telling you."

"Well at least as far as you knew. It wasn't until you decided you could trust me enough to reveal that you were a devil that I told you I already knew about the supernatural. But you didn't tell me about the engagement thing. It wasn't until you tried to get mama to help stabilize my powers that I found out about it."

Rias snapped her fingers at the two again, though she rolled her eyes at the two. Issei and Sona shared a look before deciding to drop the small details and told their story about how things got to be where they are now. Rias joining in any time something involving her or her peerage was talked about. In the end Sairoarg and Seekvaira had been caught up on events with their friends, but neither one had gotten to talk about what's been going on with them as the talk was done more as a way to get them used to Issei and possibly start a friendship with him.

"Man it's gotten pretty late."

Sairoarg said as he looked at the clock.

"I was hoping to catch up with you two but we spent all that time letting you get to know Issei..."

Rias pouted, though it didn't matter too much to her since she was just happy to see Issei was making friends with her friends.

"You guys are welcome to stay the night. I know Sona is, and I bet Rias wants to see more of this place so she's going to stay and explore."

"Not this time. I've got a few things I need to prepare for."

Seekvaira told him, shaking her head though she did mention that she'd like to visit again when she stood up. Sairoarg on the other hand took Issei up on the offer, planning to spend a couple days getting close with his cousin.

Issei saw Seekvaira to the door as he had his head butler Sebastian show Sairoarg and his peerage to rooms they could stay in. After that, Issei moved to his room unsurprised to see Sona hadn't waited for him and already gotten ready for bed.

Sighing Issei got into his pajamas before crawling into bed besides Sona. He kissed her forehead as his arms snaked around her.

"Goodnight Sona"

"Night, Ise..."

* * *

S.R: Okay for those who are wondering why this much deviation from canon I have an answer. If/When I get to the point of the faction leaders sealing themselves, I will be diverging from canon and it will all be fanon material after that point. Because of that, I'm trying to bring Seekvaira and Sairoarg into the story more prominently since they'll be important figures for the devils along side Issei, Sona, Rias, and Vali.


	31. Training Montage: Start

S.R: Well it's time for another chapter. Hope you all enjoy this one.

* * *

The next morning Issei found that he had more guests than he did the night before. Or rather he was hosting a meeting because of a need for secrecy. After recording a copy of Diodora's conversation with Shalba, Vali had approached Azazel and shared his find with the fallen-angel. Azazel in turn shared it with the Four Satans. Because they had to handle things carefully to avoid tipping the scales and showing their hand to the Old Devils Faction, the faction leaders had decided to deal with it in secret.

So when Issei and Sona sat down to eat breakfast after seeing off Sairaorg, they found company in the form of Ajuka, Sirzechs, Azazel, and Vali. The White Dragon Emperor shared his find with the two, who weren't really surprised. Issei explained why they weren't shocked to hear the news.

"Honestly I figured he was up to something. Last night when he approached us, he may have had a 'valid' reason because he was asking if we knew anything about a person he was looking for, but… the entire time Sona was answering his question he was staring at my peerage and I. Especially Zoephiel and Kalawarner."

"Before coming I spoke with Micheal about a theory I had, after seeing Diodora's peerage… If I'm right he's only interested in them because Zoephiel now has **Twilight Healing** , and Kalawarner for a reason that has Micheal pretty mad for once."

Azazel commented. He continued on by mentioning that Kalawarner used to be a foot soldier for the angels, but she had fallen shortly after he did, she chimed in mentioning she fell because she raped and abused by a devil. Despite no longer being welcome in Heaven because of the Great War, she was allowed to keep her sword so she could at least defend herself.

Issei wanted to ask how Diodora figured that out and why it mattered, but the moment he went to open his mouth it hit him. As he realized it, Issei felt his blood beginning to boil. His friend was being targeted by a sick and twisted bastard.

"Diodora's been going around and causing holy maidens from the church to be excommunicated, so that he can claim them for his peerage hasn't he? He wants Kalawarner because he realized she used to be an angel… I'm going to crush him, and I'm going to enjoy every moment of it."

Sona, for her part was just as pissed off as Issei, but she was shocked when she heard he was going to make it personal with Diodora. Issei may be protective to a fault, but he was not normally so vindictive. Though she put the concern about that aside, as Sirzechs started speaking.

"Of course. We have to be careful about this, so we'll let things continue as planned, but since they're certainly setting a trap, we'll have to set one of our own. But Diodora is pretty powerful, and so is Shalba. If he shows… You wouldn't be able to win. Luckily we've got two weeks to prepare."

Issei nodded, a serious look in his eyes as he turned to Vali.

"Remember what we were talking about the other day? Go for it."

Vali nodded and left the room to summon a few more guests. Sirzechs and Sona were confused, but Issei ignored their questions about it as he called not just his peerage but his two familiars as well. After explaining the situation to them Vali returned to the room.

"Koneko, Kalawarner you two are going to be training with a few friends of Vali's. He'll be going with you Koneko so he can help explain things better and soothe things over but after that he'll probably be joining me. Bova go to your dad and ask him to train you. Garran I'm not really sure we know anyone that could help you, so I have no idea who can train you. As for me… Tiamat we're stepping things up. That means Zoephiel will be with us, Since I have no doubt I'll need her healing at the end of the day."

Issei ordered as he looked at each member of his peerage. He didn't assign anything to Sona because he figured she would already be going to her sister for more training anyway. But he was surprised to see Ajuka speak up.

"I know this may seem strange since he's my younger brother… But if he's truly working with the Old Devil Faction… He needs to be stopped. I don't know if you know this but I'm a master magician. If you need someone to teach you Garran, I'll do it."

The next person to speak was Bova. Considering someone was targeting his fellow peerage member he was significantly pissed as well. Enough so that he was not just willing to train with his father but eager to.

"I've got a better idea boss. Rather than continue your secret training with Tiamat, why don't the two of you join my dad and I? The two of them working together to train us? We'll reach the next level so quickly that when it comes time to destroy those that target us, you won't even need to use the **Boosted Gear** on them."

Issei thought about it, and nodded his head finding it to be a fair point and a great idea. Two teachers forcing him to work beyond his limits would be perfect. Especially if Vali joined in after getting things settled between Koneko and the person he intended to have her learn from.

Sona however was confused about the 'secret training' Bova had mentioned that Issei was doing with Tiamat already. But she figured that could be discussed later, as she stood up and activated her magic circle.

"I'm going to see if big sister is willing to help me."

Issei nodded at that as he stood as well, moving to plant a kiss on Sona's forehead before stepping back so she could leave to find her sister. Bova moved from the wall he was leaning against to stand next to him, as Tiamat strolled over to them and Zoephiel stood up from her seat to join the group. Nodding at everyone else Issei let Bova teleport them to his father's home to see about getting Tannin to join in on the fun.

Garran sighed as he stood.

"Well this should be interesting at least. I've heard a lot about you Lord Beelzebub, so I look forward to learning from you."

He gave a slight bow as Ajuka stood as well, the two following Issei's lead and leaving. That left Koneko, Kalawarner, Sirzechs, Azazel, and Vali sitting in the dinning room. Azazel having knowledge on Vali's friends already realized what Issei meant when he told Vali to 'go for it.' turning to Sirzechs he spoke.

"Before Vali's guests get here, you need to hear this as well."

With Vali's input he explained the situation behind Koneko's older sister Kuroka. Thanks to Vali having found the proof to back it up, Sirzechs had to sigh. Koneko and Kuroka, used to have a high class devil for a master, though only Kuroka was part of the devils peerage. However as far as anyone knew she went berserk one day and killed their master before running away and abandoning Koneko. At the time it was a certain power that was blamed, by someone clamming that it using that power had driven the girl insane for some reason.

But with the evidence Vali had brought, he learned the truth. Kuroka had been letting their master experiment on her, but upon finding out he was going to do the same to her little sister she killed him. While it wasn't enough to exonerate her from the crime, it was enough to drop the title of 'Stray-devil' so she wouldn't be hunted down anymore. Despite this as an older sibling himself Sirzechs understood why she killed their master, especially since from the diary Vali had provided as evidence he learned that the experiment was likely to kill Koneko in the process. Rising from his position, Sirzechs left in order to introduce the newly acquired evidence to the Devil Council and get her status as a stray revoked, even though all that really meant was she would no longer be hunted down.

Because neither Kalawarner nor Koneko left the room they both heard the story. Koneko had mixed feelings about the fact that Issei and Vali were planning to explain it to her and giver Kuroka a chance to see her again. Mostly because she was deeply hurt by the fact her sister had essentially abandoned her. Sure now that she was older, having heard the story she could understand the reasoning behind the fact that her older sister left. But that didn't make it okay, nor did it stop the hurt.

Kalawarner in a gesture of comfort placed a hand on the white haired girls shoulder and squeezed gently. It was her way of showing that Koneko had friends that cared, and would be there for her if she needed it. Azazel and Vali on the other hand just sat there. They were a neutral party in the situation because they both had ties to Koneko and her older sister Kuroka.

 **Meanwhile**

Issei and Bova had no problems talking Tannin into helping them train for the upcoming Rating Game. Though they did suspect it was because Tiamat was helping. After all while they were making their way out to the training grounds that Tannin liked to use, the two both mentioned it had been far too long since they last got the chance to talk.

Zoephiel had chosen to stay back and away from the practice field they were using, so she didn't risk getting hurt by stray attacks or debris that where scattered about from the ferocity she knew was coming. After all she and Bova were the only two people that knew about Issei's secret training with Tiamat, and that was only because she had to heal him after every session. Though she guessed that healing Issei and Bova every day would increase the speed she could heal wounds at, or maybe even allow her to heal more dangerous and possibly life threatening wounds.

Issei and Bova stood at one end of a massive barren stretch on at the base of a mountain. The other end was where Tannin stood, while Tiamat had taken dragon form and was flying above them.

"Before we get started I need to ask. Are you going to do any magic training master?"

Tiamat's voice echoed from above as she looked down on Issei and Bova. Issei shook his head as he responded.

"Kinda. Also you may be my familiar but please just call me Issei. I don't really like being called master…"

Tannin quirked an eyebrow at that before asking what Issei had meant by kinda. The answer Issei gave him, is that he wasn't going to work on anything involving his Devil magic or ice Elemental magic. All magic he would work on is the Dragon magic he has access to as the host of Ddraig.

"So you mean you'll be working on **Dragon Seals** , and Aura techniques at least."

"Seals yes. It would be handy to have a few things hidden in a seal that I could pull out in an emergency. Aurano. I've been doing **Aura** **M** **anipulation** with Ddraig when I sleep."

"That's why I've felt your Aura fluctuating at night!"

Tiamat yelled at his words. But Bova just had a questioning look on his face. Tannin rolled his eyes at his son's ignorance, having forgotten that he raised his son to be a brawler and didn't bother to teach him about these other draconic abilities. Tiamat have already figured that to be the case took the chance to explain.

"When people talk about magic, they talk about the kinds that anyone can learn. But Dragon magic… It can't be taught to anyone without at least a drop of dragons blood in their veins. As Ddraig's host, maste- ahem. Issei is half dragon, even after being revived by his Evil Pieces."

"Some of what is referred to as Dragon Magic isn't really magic, so much as it is a power that only we can tap into. What I mean by that is Aura. Every living being has it's own Aura. You can look at it like a glass of water. Dragons are the only ones that have enough Aura to fill said glass. Every other race only has a drop or two, and so they can't do anything with it."

Issei took over giving Bova the explanation that Ddraig gave him. But he continued and gave examples of what can be done with Aura.

"Everything you can do with Aura is done through Aura manipulation, which makes it tangible so you can do what you want with it. When I train with Ddraig I manipulate my aura into armor to protect me from his attacks. But I can also create weapons with it. According to him, I may even be able to use it to affect the weather after I've trained with it enough."

At that point Tannin took over the conversation, reminding everyone they were here to train. But Tiamat promised that at the end of the day she'd work with Issei on learning to use Dragon Seals.

Issei nodded as they began to fight, planning to use today to find where the two teens limits were.

As he clashed with one of Tannin's fists Issei figured this was the start of his karma for not talking with Koneko about the training he'd set her up for.

 **Meanwhile**

Garran studied Ajuka intensely. Making sure he committed every important detail to memory, he closed his eyes. Taking a deep breathe he followed what he had seen attempting to recreate the spell he was being shown. Ajuka had given him the calculations needed to cast it, but without seeing it for himself Garran was unable to copy it. Unlike the others who were likely to train through pushing themselves to the next level through fighting, Garran was growing stronger by copying Ajuka's work.

He didn't need to question why Issei's magic training was different as he already knew the answer. Dragon Magic is learned through trial and error. Devil magic is shaped by desire, and strengthened by emotions. But all other forms of magic? For all other magic users they could only grow stronger by learning new spells. The power of a spell was determined by the amount of magic used, and a mage could increase their magic containers size by learning new spells. In other words his growth was dependent on the number of spells he could do the calculations for.

Luckily he could take a look at another persons calculations and run through them in his head, confirming them mentally to use a new spell. Of course when he found a spell he really liked the calculation was recorded in his grimiore for safe keeping. But at the pace Ajuka was showing him new spells he was already planning to make a second grimiore to contain them all.

"Considering my **Equation of Military Supremacy** ability that lets me control pretty much everything through the use of equations and formulas I have never found myself needing a grimiore. Especially since my ability also lets me instantly see and understand the calculations needed to control everything. But I do have to say yours seems to be of a very high quality. Whoever made it must be gifted."

"I did. Along with the staff I use to create barriers when I need more time to cast my spells."

Garran responded, showing the green haired devil his collapsible staff along with his grimiore. While the stave wasn't anything to sneeze at since it was crafted with extreme care and detail, it was no where near as impressive as his grimiore.

But his grimiore was unique. Thanks to pop culture influencing things everyone expects a grimiore to be a tome of some kind. Yet that's not exactly true. Wands, staves, tomes, crystal balls, even jewelry, they were all different forms of grimiores. Anything that is used to channel magic is a grimiore. Garran's was unique. Thanks to his impressive innate ability with magic he was able to craft a grimiore that could be separated into multiple parts, each one able to do something different. Granted he only knew how to do it thanks to his grandfather Nicholas Flamel telling him it was possible.

"You have an impressive talent for magic, to be able to use so many different types of magic, and rapidly grasp the more complicated facets of crafting these spells I've shown you. It's extraordinary to say the least. I would even go so far as to say you have the potential to grow strong enough to rival even the greatest of mages."

Ajuka told him as Garran showed the three sections of his grimiore and explained what each one was capable of. To start he had a slightly longer than normal wand. It's use was as a focus for his magic, amplifying it and allowing him to cast stronger spells. The next piece was a gemstone that was being hidden as a pendant. It was a type of gemstone known as materia. Its function as part of his grimiore it provided him the ability to use spells he didn't have an affinity for. In regards to Garran it was used to allow him to cast fire and ground elemental spells, summoning magic, teleportation magic, transformation magic, and even sealing magic. Except this was only possible due to the fact his materia piece was clear. The color of a materia piece denoted what it was capable of. Even though it was true that all colors enabled elemental magic, clear was the only color that allowed for every element to be cast.

Clear has no special affinities so it could be used for any kind of magic. Blue allowed for illusion and transformation magic on top of providing water based affinities. Red was the color of fire based affinities and strengthening magic. Yellow granted earthen affinities, summoning magic, and protection magic, while Green provided wind affinities, summoning magic, teleportation magic, and sealing magic. White materia was used for white magic, and granted both wind and water affinities. Of course that meant it's counter part Black materia allowed black magic, and both fire and earth based abilities.

But the last part of his grimiore was the most useful one for the case of training. The part of his grimiore that actually recorded the calculations needed to cast spells. His bracelet, that was clasped on his right wrist. Imbued in the platinum it was made of, was a special spell that recorded the calculations for the spells he wanted to store in his grimiore. Once removed and attached to his wand it acted as clasp, that would hold the materia gemstone. Together all three pieces became a scepter.

"It's a shame you've already stored so many spells in it. To recreate a second grimiore like this one… It'll take you at least a month for each section and that's only if you have the materials on hand, especially since they have to be refined a certain way to avoid disrupting another parts function."

"I actually found these materials in the old alchemist workshop in the Lucifuge mansion."

"It's been a week since Issei became the head of the clan… There is no way that is a new grimiore that only took you a week to create."

"Well I did have a little bit of help refining the materia. But the platinum for the bracelet and the ash wood for the wand had already been treated and refined for use in crafting. Not to mention I didn't think it was possible to split up a grimiore like this till I mentioned the materials to my grandfather."

Ajuka was silent at that, especially once he remembered that Garran was the grandson of the great wizard Nicholas Flamel. Nodding his head at Garran's words he sat down, questioning just how far Garran's skills would grow through their training.

 **Meanwhile (once again)**

"Dammit Serafall! That was really cold!"

Sona shouted at her older sister. The moment she appeared in Serafall's office the older devil cleared her schedule for the day, ready to spend time with her little sister. But she was surprised when Sona demanded to train with her. After hearing Sona's explanation she agreed to the training, and the two moved outside to the Leviathan's private beach. Since they specialized with water based magic it was obvious that they'd train in an area that kept the two supplied with water. But Sona was unprepared for her older sisters training.

The older devil had decided to showcase just how large the gap between them was, attacking Sona with one of her higher tiered spells, causing the glasses wearing devil to be encased in a block of ice. But Sona had broken out rather easily, only to be driven into shock by icy cold water. Water so cold it should have become ice instantly.

"Sorry Sona… I just wanted to make sure you understood just how harsh this is going to be."

Upon hearing Serafall's response Sona nodded, her mouth set in a grim line as she activated her magic seal to retaliate. Hoping her actions would show she didn't care how tough her training was.

 **Meanwhile (last one)**

Vali's friends that he called had finally arrived. Because he wasn't too worried about things between Koneko and Kuroka he just introduced the two he had called for and left, Azazel following him as he could tell that Kalawarner would be able to help Koneko fight through her issue's with Kuroka.

But after their departure it was an awkward silence. Koneko and Kuroka were staring at each other, Kalawarner was looking over the short white haired girl with concern in her eyes, and the person he had called for to train Kalawarner was looking on the entire situation but being respectful by staying silent.

Eventually the silence was broken as Koneko spoke just one word.

"Why?"

Kuroka gave a sigh as she looked at her younger sister.

"I assume you heard why I killed our former master, so you're asking why I left you behind… Well I knew we'd be on the run, like-"

"NO! I understand that part. Why does it still hurt to know you chose to leave? Why does it still hurt to have been left behind?"

Kuroka's eyes widened at the shout from the white haired girl, that interrupted her reasoning. She reached out a hand towards her younger sister intending to pull her into a hug and comfort her, but the white haired girl flinched away and ran off.

Kalawarner, stood to follow though she turned to the two guests that Vali had called for and spoke a quick apology.

"I apologize for how things have gone so far… I'll try to calm her down but I don't think she'll be willing to do much with you today."

Kuroka let out a heavy sigh, disappointed that things weren't going to be as easy as she hopped. Her companion that was brought in to help Kalawarner, shook his head and chuckled at her.

"Nothing worth it is ever done easily."

"Oh shut up Arthur."

She muttered, unwilling to agree even though she new it was true.

* * *

S.R: The next chapter and maybe even the one after it will be done the same as this one because I kinda want to focus on their training this time.


	32. Training Montage: Part 2

S.R: I'm actually a little excited for this chapter.

Issei: Why?

S.R: Because I had a lot of fun writing a few of these scenes. Also please note that they are not in any particular order the flash backs are to random points in time during the two weeks of training.

Issei: Then let's see it!

* * *

Since his aptitude for learning new spells was extremely high, it had only taken a week for Ajuka to teach Garran all the spell he had intended for the teen to learn. But with another week before the Rating Game against Diodora, he felt there was more to do. So after pressing the older devil about it, Garran's training had switched gears from increasing his magic pool and spell list.

Now he was getting battle experience. By that we mean Ajuka would give him a scenario and Garran would have to use spells that fit the rules he was given, while sparing with the older devil, who would occasionally call out and change the rules.

"We're in a scorching hot desert fighting one on one but there's an army on either side. Large scale attacks would harm your allies as well."

Ajuka shouted to him from across the field they were sparing in, having fallen back after finding that Garran's spells were devastating in close range situations. Thinking about the new rules he had been given Garran decided **Ice** and **Water** elemental magic was off the table as the heat of a desert would make them useless for anything other than massive spells that covered a large area. Even though it was a fast decision he was still too slow in thinking of his counter, and Ajuka had taken advantage using **Summoning** magic to create a human sized clay golem. But Garran didn't know that Ajuka had layered his spells so that not only had he summoned the clay construct, he had reinforced it's defenses and given it a speed boost. The green haired devil had almost given it a power boost as well, but decided against it after a moment, choosing instead to rapidly fire off a few spells to give his golem a chance to get close. This was because he knew the golem wouldn't be able to get a hit off on the dark haired teen if he didn't use a few spells to distract the boy.

But he was shocked to see Garran doing something new in response. Rather than was precious time defending himself the blue eyed teen cast a spell to increase his speed, dodging the magic that had been flung his way. But as he moved another spell was being cast, a thin lance of flames appearing in Garran's hands as he jumped. Rotating his hands as he pumped his strength into them, he finished the spell causing the lance to become a flaming scythe that he brought down on the clay golem. Normally a move like that would have been a finishing attack but Garran wasn't satisfied and instead of just dissecting the golem in two down the middle he kept the momentum going as he spun, cleaving the golem's head off before the return stroke severed it's body at the waist as well.

A grin game to Ajuka's face as he started to lose a bit of his composure and enjoy himself. Letting go of his tight control just a bit, he fell into the rhythm of battle creating a dozen golem constructs before telling Garran it was now himself versus an army for his battle scenario, this time placed in a tundra.

"That's more like it! **Glacial Gatling**! The teen called out, letting his magic form several decently sized magic circles appear behind him.

But that was just the beginning. As he pointed towards the center of the group of golems charging his way, the magic circles started launching pillars of ice at an amazingly fast rate. The size of those pillars was nothing to sneeze at either, since they were easily six feet long javelin's of monstrously thick ice. When the dust settled Ajuka and Garran both had to gasp at the sight. Not a single shard of Ajuka's golems remained, yet the spears of ice Garran's attack had launched were still perfectly fine, not even a hint of scratch or crack on them.

Sharing a look Ajuka and Garran slowly gained maniacal grins as they returned to their mock battle, which was becoming more and more extreme with every spell cast.

"Hot damn this is fun!"

Garran called out, the adrenaline pumping through his body giving him the feeling of exhilaration. The green haired devil that was helping him train couldn't help but agree with the young mage.

 **Meanwhile**

Kalawarner had managed to calm Koneko down and get her to agree to at least join them outside while she worked with Arthur for her own training. The white haired girl wasn't sure she was ready to do anything with her sister, nor was she sure Kuroka could teach her anything that would be useful as a Rook, since as far as she remembered the older Nekomata was a Bishop. Over the course of the first three days she slowly started to respond to her older sister, something Kalawarner noticed despite her own training.

After opening up just a bit with Kuroka the young cat girl almost lost her temper when the older cat girl called her by her birth name which is Shirone. Luckily she managed calm herself and explain the fact she never wanted to be called that name again.

"Ever since Rias's brother defended me from the Devil Council for your actions, I have been Koneko. I had to leave Shirone behind in order to move on. That name is not me. Not anymore."

Kuroka understood, the council had ordered that her little sister leave every aspect of her former life behind and start again. Nodding slowly she apologized for calling the white haired girl by that name. After that they were cautious with each other, Koneko all but shutting the older girl out and Kuroka trying to make Koneko smile and look up to her like she had all those years ago. Things went on like this until Arthur and Kalawarner had had enough. Neither one of them were really into the training, both being halfhearted in their duels as they kept an eye on the two.

"Dammit I've had enough of this..."

Arthur mumbled as he walked up to the two Nekomata's. Kalawarner followed him, intent on giving her two cents on the matter.

"Alright you two enough is enough. We're supposed to be training and none of can fully focus because of this… Look I understand it's hard for you Koneko, and I'm not going to tell you how to feel or anything like that. But Kuroka is at least making an effort to make amends for leaving you. Meet her halfway. As for you," The blonde man said before turning to look at his companion and continuing his lecture.

"Kuroka you can't make things go back to the way they were. Rather than focus on the past, you need to think about what's happening right now, and what will happen in the future."

Kalawarner nodded along with him, noticing the frown from Kuroka, and the look of frustration from Koneko. She went to speak up but Koneko beat her to the punch.

"We're here to train so fine. I'll stop completely ignoring her, so let's get to work."

The white haired girl said as she stood up and stretched, making to push Arthur and Kalawarner back into the training grounds for a three way fight. But Kalawarner didn't budge, instead she gave Koneko a soft look.

"Issei arranged it so you'd be training with your sister, not Arthur and I."

"I can't. Kuroka's a Bishop and I'm a Rook. She doesn't have anything _to_ teach me."

The short girl replied, pointing out the fact her sister as a Bishop was more of a magic user than a melee fighter like herself. But Kuroka was quick to correct that thought.

"That's not quite true… I can teach you **Senjutsu** after all."

Koneko's eyes went wide as she heard the word, backing up and even hissing at the idea. Kalawarner wasn't sure what brought that on, as the short girl actively hide her Nekomata nature. The only reason anyone knew she was a Nekomata, was the fact that they could faintly sense it. Because Koneko suppressed her instinct and catlike nature so deeply, anyone who could sense it from her would just assume she's distantly related to one, rather than a Nekomata herself.

"Look, I know that you heard **Senjutsu** being blamed by the Devil Council for why I murdered our former master. However those idiots don't know how to use **Senjutsu** let alone how it actually works…"

Kuroka told her younger sister, though she wasn't smiling just yet. After taking a breath she continued to speak.

" **Senjutsu** is… Well they aren't exactly incorrect to call it dangerous to it's wielder, but not in the way they think. It doesn't drive you insane or anything like that. It's a power that was created in an attempt to replicate a special ability of dragons."

To explain what she meant by that Kuroka had to give an example for how **Senjutsu** works. First she stated that all living beings have an aura, even non-sentient life has an aura.

"But not all life forms can access or use their aura, the only ones to do so are dragons… If we look at our bodies like a cup, dragons are the only ones to have more than a drop or two of aura inside them. Well **Senjutsu** was created as a way for other species to be more like dragons. However it is impossible for us to ever match a dragon by using **Senjutsu**."

Koneko while listening, wasn't really interested as she was still on edge with the idea of learning **Senjutsu** , but Arthur and Kalawarner were paying attention, enough so that Arthur was willing to ask why it would be impossible to match a dragon with it's use.

"Remember how I said we can look at our bodies like a cup? Well that doesn't really apply to dragons. For example let's say a human is a shot glass, which can't hold as much as say a regular cup which is what a Nekomata would be in this case. Dragons? No matter what, even the dragon with the smallest amount of aura among dragons is a pond in size compared to the rest of us."

"You're saying we can only use **Senjutsu** to fill up our cup then… But because our cup is smaller than a dragon's we'd never be equal to one? What about if a person uses **Senjutsu** to overflow their cup?"

Arthur asked, a thoughtful look on his face.

"To your first question, yes that's exactly what I'm saying. As for your second question well… That's why **Senjutsu** is dangerous to it's wielder. If we try and fill the cup beyond what it can hold the cup breaks. In other words using **Senjutsu** to increase our aura too much is damaging to our body. Not to mention it's extraordinarily taxing to do for extended periods of time."

Koneko was still apprehensive about learning to use **Senjutsu** but she was at least a little more willing to try, now that she had heard the truth about it. That apprehensiveness was more because of the fact that she understood how **Senjutsu** is preformed, without Kuroka explaining it.

A **Senjutsu** user is someone who manipulates the nature around them, drawing the aura out from their surroundings and linking it to their own. That meant a battle of wills between the person using the technique and the life that the aura is being drawn from. This is what the Devil Council meant by the fact that **Senjutsu** could drive a person insane, and Koneko instinctively knew it.

 **Meanwhile (again)**

"I must say, she's done far better than I expected."

A woman with piercing lilac colored eyes, spoke with a proud smile on her face. One that was both matched and exceeded by the smile on her companions face.

"Yeah, Sona's making huge strides to keep up with Issei. But even I was surprised when after a few days she asked if I'd tag team train her with you mother."

The second woman spoke as they watched the now temporarily unconscious Sona. After Sirzechs and Azazel shared Vali's find with Issei and his peerage Sona knew that her fiancee would do everything in his power to grow strong enough to stop the plans that Diodora was making with the elder devils that made up the Old Devil faction. So she was determined to grow stronger and stand beside him, hopefully as an equal.

After all he was risking his life, and she couldn't stand to stay behind on the sidelines of his fights any longer. So to be able to stand by his side she had gone to her older sister for training. But after a couple days it was clear to the glasses wearing girl that she needed her mother's help to control her **Eye** magics. Approaching her mother she begged the older devil to join in her training sessions.

Despite the fact she and her husband are distant with their daughter, the Lady of the Sitri household really does love her. After hearing her youngest child beg to be trained to stay beside her future husband in all endeavors she caved, and began teaching her daughter the magics of her birth clan.

"You know, I don't think she even realizes just how much she's grown since meeting that young man."

Lady Sitri commented as she recalled the shock she felt upon seeing her youngest daughter using a teleportation spell without a magic circle, just becoming water before flashing away. Not that she was able to get out of the way of the attack that she was trying to avoid, which was her current reason for being on the ground out cold.

"I didn't know she could do that. I bet she doesn't know it either. If I'd have known about it, I might have tried teaching her how to mold her **Water** magic into **Ice** magic like mine."

Serafall stated having guessed what her mother was referring to about Sona's growth.

"No. **Water** magic might be a strong core magic for the Sitri, which is why you are both gifted with it, but Sona takes after me more than you did, which means she has a higher affinity for **Wind** magic like my birth clan. Focusing on **Water** magic like you would be putting all of her eggs in one basket as the saying goes. I'll teach her **Wind** magic, which should lend itself to helping her with the **Eye** magic she has. After all her **Geass** eye, has the same ability my grandmother had. Once she gets used to the feeling of using **Wind** magic she'll be able use her **Geass** eye to use wind currents as a focus for clairvoyance."

The older devil explained to her first daughter. Serafall for her part just nodded, as she knew no matter how strong Sona became, her specialty would never truly lie in combat. Sure Sona could become a force to be reckoned with, but Sona was not born to be a fighter, not with her high level of intelligence. If their mother could help her learn to harness the power of her **Geass** eye magic it would take her tactical abilities to new levels.

As she finished that thought, a smile came to her face again as Sona stirred.

"Damn. I didn't quite make it."

She mumbled as she sat up and rubbed her head.

"No, but do you know what you did?"

Serafall said, her tone calm so as not to betray just how excited and proud she was. Sona just shook her head, waiting for a mini lecture on what she'd done wrong. Her eyes became the size of dinner plates when her mother told her that she had teleported without using a magic circle.

"Yes, it was very impressive to see you doing it almost instinctively… Now take a moment to regain yourself and meet me up on the balcony my daughter. Since you take after me more than your sister, we're going to see if your affinity to **Wind** magic is enough for me to teach you the basics."

 **Meanwhile (last one)**

Tiamat walked away from the massive field where Issei and Tannin were still fighting. Every couple of days they'd stop fighting and join Zoephiel for a bit of rest and some food. But this time, was different. Issei and Bova had improved rapidly, to the point the last bout with the two dragon kings had lasted a day and a half, before Bova collapsed. But it wasn't from the strain or being tired no. Bova had taken a hit to the back of the head that gave him a concussion. Normally Tannin and Tiamat would have called for a break so Bova could be healed and Issei could get a bit of rest, but Issei was so close to the next level that he refused to back down.

He had Tiamat grab Bova to be healed while he continued to face off against Tannin. Mostly because it Tiamat had to hold back when attacking Issei as his familiar. But also because she would be able to get Bova to Zoephiel's side for healing far more quickly than Tannin could.

Issei ducked under a fist that was aimed at his head, and rotated his body into a flip bringing his leg down on top of the outstretched arm from Tannin. Smirking the dragon king dropped his arm and spun, swinging his other arm as he did, intending to slam it into Issei's side before the teen could right himself.

But Issei had managed to do so and dug his heels in as he crossed his arms protectively in front of him. Neither one of them were surprised to see Issei sliding along the ground, though he didn't get pushed back as far as the dragon had expected him to be. Lunging forward again Issei drew Tannin into a fist fight, neither one giving the other any ground as they pummeled each other. For everyone punch one would land on the other they would receive one in return.

Moments later they were separated. Issei had taken a fist to the chin, several hits to the chest, one punch to the face that had broken his nose, and his arms were covered in bruises that were forming on top of other bruises from previous clashes with Tannin.

Tannin was still standing strong, but Issei had worn him down more than his appearance suggested. It was also harder to tell if the dragon had any bruising since he was in dragon form. While he could keep going he knew that he wouldn't be able to go much longer without having to use his full might.

Issei at this point was panting heavily. He and Bova had been training almost none stop, and at this point the only reason Issei was still standing was his stubborn determination to get at least one decent attack in on the dragon. As for Bova, well he was unconscious after taking a blow to the back of the head from his father. Tiamat was busy taking the younger dragon back down the mountain path to Zoephiel so he could be healed as she was positive the hit to the head caused a concussion.

"Hmph. I'll admit, you've impressed me with your endurance kid. But it isn't enough. You are still far to weak."

The dragon spoke knowing that he'd be riling the teen up. It was on purpose after all. Issei was very powerful already, and that was without using the power he had as Ddraig's host. Tannin found himself scared of the full might Issei would one day have. Issei was almost a match for him with just the basic **Boost** ability of his **Sacred Gear** and his exceptionally strong magic. But the brown haired teen had yet to step up. He knew Issei could use his **Balance Breaker** , but the teen hadn't even thought to use it apparently. So he was going to force Issei to activated it by crushing Issei's pride until the anger gave way and caused him to use it. As Tannin continued to speak and rile Issei up he was unaware of the surprise he was about to receive.

While he knew that Tannin was doing it on purpose to make him made fight even harder than before, Issei was still getting frustrated. With all the potential he had, Issei was still too weak.

' **Partner. I know you're tired of being weak. You have so many reasons to be strong after all. But you are forgetting something. I'm here with you. My power is your power. You want to be stronger? Then** **use my power!** '

Ddraig spoke to him, egging him on towards the truth of the **Boosted Gear**. But that's because only the red dragon truly knew Tannin's reason for pushing the teen. Sure he wanted Issei to fight with even more ferocity than before, it would help Issei improve faster. But the true reason the dragon king was pushing Issei's buttons was because he knew that Issei's emotions would be the key. After all with how things were playing out Issei was developing a drive to become stronger than anything. With that drive he could change and evolve his **Balance Breaker**. Sacred Gears respond to the desires of their wielders after all.

Taking a deep breath after hearing Ddraig's words, Issei recalled the feeling of his **Balance Breaker**. Every time he's used it, something had felt. Incomplete. He recalled hearing that a **Balance Breaker** is supposed to be the apex of what a Scared Gear can do. Realizing what Ddraig was trying to tell him Issei smirked as he glared defiantly at Tannin.

Letting his power flow freely from his body it pulsed brightly causing Tannin to loose sight of him. Letting his power do as it wanted Issei spoke out with Ddraig's voice layered over top of his.

" **Welsh Dragon** **Balance Breaker:** **Crimson** **Imperial Scale Mail!** "

* * *

S.R: For those of you that read these notes I'll explain why we've evolved Issei's Balance Breaker. Well first, he still has the regular Scale Mail, it's just this Crimson Imperial Scale Mail is a level 2 version of it. There will be more levels to it as he grows stronger and learns more of his abilities. Now Crimson is part of the name because it's a nod to Ddraig, and because of Issei's bloodline as a Gremory. Imperial is obviously there for Emperor, which is self explanatory.


	33. Training Montage: Finale

S.R: Hi there folks. Ready for the last chapter of training (for now)? Too bad, it's here! Let's get on with it.

* * *

 **With Garran**

The black haired teen groaned from his place on the ground. Every day for the past week he'd battled against Ajuka. The green haired elder was extraordinarily powerful. Despite his growth, every time it seemed like he would have an advantage Ajuka would adjust his power level accordingly. Yet he never made the green haired devil sweat. Never made him panic.

All Garran was able to do, was draw the older devils interest. 'Oh, you can cast that spell at this level now? Let's try this then' He heard Ajuka comment once or twice.

"Oh come now, this week has been quite the fun one. No need to groan at me."

Ajuka spoke as he extended a hand towards Garran.

Rolling his eyes Garran accepted the help to stand up. Sighing as he fully stood up he turned to the green haired man.

"It has been fun. But it's also been scary as hell. When it comes to fighting you're such a monster… I'm just glad it was training and not an actual life or death fight."

"I'm not that bad am I?"

Snorting at Ajuka's response Garran just asked the older man how much of his power he'd been using during the last few days of their training.

"You shouldn't try to compare yourself with me just yet."

"Ajuka, we both damn well know that you are ranked in the top 10 strongest beings. You could easily wipe the floor with me. I just want to know how easily."

Garran returned frustrated his elder companion. With Issei being who and what he is, Garran knew his king would most certainly become a member of the top 10 Strongest beings. But it wouldn't do for a Peerage king to be the only strong one. Hence his frustration.

"Hmm… While that's certainly true. It's not as bad as you make it out to be. While I could still name a few handfuls of people that could defeat you, that doesn't mean it'd be easy for them. Nor that Your peak won't surpass them."

"I'm not going to get a straight answer from you am I?"

He commented after Ajuka's rebuke. The green haired devil just shook his head with a small smile.

"Well then I'd say it's time for one final round."

Garran spoke as he rolled his neck, hoping they could stop themselves from escalating the sparing match before they ran out of time. After all they were only going to have a day to rest from training before the Rating Game with Diodora.

"That it is. But before we begin. I want to remind you it takes time to reach your true potential. Just because it's rather easy for me to win right now, doesn't mean it always will be the case."

Nodding his head, Garran closed his eyes and calmed himself. When his grayish blue orb like eyes opened, magic was pouring out of him. A confident smirk on his face was the only warning Ajuka got before an explosion of magic began the clash between the two.

 **With Kalawarner**

"Ha!"

The long navy blue haired woman cried out as she thrust her sword forward. She knew it was going to be blocked, but her hopes were that she had enough force in the stab to push Arthur back so she could have some breathing room.

It worked, but not enough as she'd hopped for as Arthur quickly swiped his sword at her once more. Leaping over it she started to spin, bringing her sword down on Arthur's head only to be blocked once more. However she was expecting that, and pushed just a bit more force into her blade, using the two swords as a spring to launch herself away from Arthur for a bit of breathing room.

"Normally a tactic like that would be a great idea, especially if it was to gain some distance between yourself and your opponent. But that won't work with me."

Arthur commented casually bringing his sword down in a vertical swing, the pressure from him attack forming a massive wind blade to be sent flying at Kalawarner. Despite the boredom he was feeling Arthur had a pleased smile on his face as he battled with the fallen-angel turned devil. She was tenacious after all, and it made helping her become stronger all the more worthwhile in his humble opinion.

For her part Kalawarner just barely managed to block the wind blade. Though as she did so, she noted that if she hadn't been so exhausted it would have been child's play. Panting, she planted the tip of her sword in the ground and leaned on the blade slightly for support.

"I'm very impressed you know. Despite the fact we haven't gotten to do as much training as either one of us would have preferred you have done quite well."

Arthur offered her praise as he sat down to relax a bit.

"Y-you've been... holding back... the entire... time... Yet I haven't... even... managed to... leave a nick on the... edge of your blade... let alone… a scratch on your body."

She slowly wheezed out, as her panting faded.

"Ever since I first met Vali and the others in our little group that follow him, I've had strong opponents. My daily training at one time was sparing in a free for all with Vali, our friend Bikou, and Kuroka," Arthur told her as a light breezed stirred around them.

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"I can't deny that it has been extraordinarily easy to fight against you. But considering just how large of a power gap is between us it makes perfect sense. That doesn't mean you didn't do a good job of shrinking that gap, especially since we've really only been focused on training for half the time we were supposed to."

Sighing Kalawarner took his words to mean that she had improved enough to be surprising at the very least. Though she wasn't quite ready to stop just yet. Mentally growling at herself to stand up and push past her limits.

"Screw that… Issei and the others are all improving steadily, so I have to keep going as well."

She stated as she shakily stood back up. Pointing her sword at Arthur, she demanded to keep going.

"Don't stop until I drop to the ground unconscious. Don't pull back and give me a chance to recover. I will keep going with all I have!"

Applauding her determination Arthur leapt into a battle ready stance, before charging forward to battle once more. The clash of steel ringing out around them as they danced through the clearing they'd been battling in.

 **With Koneko**

Taking a deep breath she let go of the aura she'd been pulling from the plants around her. A pleased smile was on her face as she looked up towards her dark haired sister.

"Nicely done. Now that you've discovered what the limit is that you can drawn in to yourself, the next step is to slowly gather the aura from nature to that point and releasing it again and again. That way you acclimate your body to having access to that amount when you use **Senjutsu**."

Kuroka explained as a proud smile came to her face. Koneko was a prodigy at **Senjutsu** just like she'd expected. Granted part of the reason she was so successful was that Kuroka was helping control the flow of aura so her younger sister could get used to the feeling, but still. With the progress Koneko had made in the short amount of time she'd been learning, she couldn't be anything less than a prodigy.

"Kuroka… Aren't we supposed to struggle with **Senjutsu**?"

The white haired Nekomata asked, wondering if her older sister was doing something to make it easier for her to get through the basics. Especially as she recalled instinctively realizing that **Senjutsu** was essentially forcing her will over the will of whatever nature was around her at the time.

"Normally, there is a slight struggle when using **Senjutsu** , but until you're used to the feeling aura and linking your aura to the aura from nature, I'm preventing that by controlling the flow."

Kuroka sheepishly explained, as she wasn't quite sure that the younger cat girl was ready for the full force of **Senjutsu**.

"Controlling the flow?"

Tilting her head as she questioned it, Koneko resembled a cat with it's curiosity peaked. Despite how much she wanted to stop and gush over how cute it looked Kuroka gave her little sister the explanation she was asking about.

"Remember our bodies are a cup for aura. Because it can be hard to maintain your focus when drawing aura from nature, I'm acting as a valve for you right now. Rather than letting you get the full torrent, I'm regulating it, so you get a small trickle of aura."

Nodding her head at the words, Koneko just asked if she'd stop regulating it. Not wanting to upset the white haired girl and risk the new found bond they'd discovered Kuroka agreed though she prepared herself to step in if things got out of hand.

 **A few days later**

After having Kuroka stop regulating the flow of aura that she drew in with **Senjutsu** , Koneko's progress in learning while accelerated, was still withing Kuroka's expectations. Though the older Nekomata was slightly surprised to see she didn't have to step in. After all despite the white haired girl being a prodigy like she'd predicted, there was always the chance of being overwhelmed unexpectedly.

"Now that you've gotten the basics down we can move on. Since we don't have much time left, there's only one ability I can teach you right now. it's called **Touki**."

After speaking, Kuroka continued on by telling her younger sister how **Touki** works, and what it can do. Because it was right up her alley for fighting style Koneko took to it with ease, only requiring half a day to be able to use **Touki** on her fists. But with two days left, before the two weeks they'd been given to train were up, she was determined to make the most out of the time by mastering **Touki** further.

 **With Bova**

Tiamat and Zoephiel had managed to convince the young dragon to stay away from the training grounds until Issei and Tannin came back down to rest. Despite his eagerness to continue he had to give in when Tiamat mentioned that the current battle they could just barely hear was still at a level above his abilities.

"Why don't you and I spar then?"

He offered as a compromise, not wanting to be left behind in power.

"Because I have a better idea that would benefit Zoephiel far more than me just kicking you around for her to heal."

Tiamat snorted. Over the course of the time they'd been training Issei had gotten her to be a bit more open with himself and Bova. To the point she was more of a friend than a servant for his peerage like she had been acting before.

"I'm all ears then."

Bova returned as he started bouncing in anticipation. Chuckling to herself, Tiamat lightly bopped him on the head. Taking her dragon form she pulled a fang from her mouth, before tossing it a short distance away. Using **Aura Manipulation** she turned the fang into a clone of her body, and linked the two.

"My clone is a training dummy. It will not move and you can wail on it all you like. All the wounds you inflict on it will be transferred to my body, and Zoephiel can heal them."

She told the two, with Zoephiel understanding instantly. But Bova was not quite as quick on the uptake and had to ask why that was better for Zoephiel than just a regular fight. When Tiamat went to open her mouth, Zoephiel beat her to it.

"Because I can stay by her side and constantly heal her wounds. It'll help increase my stamina far more than just healing you and waiting till you need healing again."

Bova just blinked in response before saying "Oh." But he recovered and a feral grin came to his face as he waited for Tiamat to say she was ready.

Lunging towards the clone, Bova gave his all. Every skill he'd learned and created. Unleashing his rage at the idea of being left behind, he attacked with such a ferocity that for a moment Tiamat worried he'd gone berserk. But after using **Telepathy** to check his mind set she smiled as she understood.

 **With Sona**

Training with her mother and sister was a massive boon to her capabilities. She was on the cusp of learning to manipulate her **Water** magic into **Ice** magic. As her mother had told her before her affinity for **Wind** magic was higher than her sisters, much higher actually as after just four days she was able to take her new found knowledge and apply it to her **Geass Eye** and finally master it, thus making it so her **Gorgon Eye** was the only power she had trouble controlling. But with her training progressing as steadily as it had been, she was confident that it would be a matter of days before she mastered it enough to have complete control.

Thanks to the increase in abilities her growth was so drastic that Serafall and their mother were both shocked. Having learned early on that their mother wasn't a battler, she quickly set up a new schedule so that she could learn more from her mother, before going to battle with Serafall to gain experience. Though she didn't get involved in the fights after that, their mother still eagerly watched Sona's progress.

Even though Serafall was still holding back quite a bit, the fights were slowly becoming more and more equal on both sides. Not just as the days went by, but as each fight ended, since every time Sona would loose she'd take a five minute break before starting a new one. They knew she was a genius but with two elemental affinities, her intelligence was really showing in her battle strategies.

Using her **Wind** magic to create a windstorm, she bolstered it's power by standing in the middle and using the force from the wind to launch exceptionally fast and sharp blades of water that were created through her **Water** magic.

Intending to trap Serafall, Sona created a massive ball of water, and threw it at her older sister. The moment Serafall was trapped inside Sona used her **Wind** magic to compress the ball of water as much as possible to make it hard to move. But Serafall being a master of **Ice** magic just froze it solid before teleporting out of the wind barrier that'd been left behind.

At one point to save herself from Serafall's **Ice** magic she combined he **Wind** and **Water** spells to crate a warm watered hurricane as a shield. Which lead Serafall to make a joke about how Sona just needed to learn **Lightning** magic to become a master of storms. Deciding to take the time to look into the basics of **Lightning** magic Sona canceled the rest of her training session with Serafall after hearing the joke. She rushed off to the closest person she could think off to learn **Lightning** magic from which just so happened to be Akeno.

Luckily the queen from Rias's peerage agreed to teach her the basics…

"I don't mind. But I've been training with my father a lot lately so I need someone new to spar with. You spend the rest of the day sparing with me and I'll teach you."

Despite the fact Sona felt chills go down her back at those words she agreed. Determined she swore to power through discontented feeling and the sparing match with Akeno and learn all she could about **Lightning** magic in the last few days she could get before the two weeks of training were over.

 **With Issei**

" **Welsh Dragon Balance Breaker: Crimson Imperial Scale Mail** , huh?"

Tannin questioned as he looked at Issei's **Balance Breaker**. He could feel the power increase and it made him worry slightly. Issei had already been equal to about 70% before he'd activated **Balance Breaker**. Depending on just how much of a boost it was Tannin would be in for a struggle. But the next thing that happened was surprising to the old dragon.

Issei didn't move at all. It looked more like he was having a chat with Ddraig mentally. But then the Red Dragon's voice rang out from Issei's body.

" **We're on hold for a moment. Some of my former hosts woke up thanks to that surge of power, and they want to see the new guy.** "

Shaking his head at that Tannin sighed, before turning his attention to the **Balance Breaker** for a close study. He'd met Ddraig's last host, and the man had a less impressive form for the **Balance Breaker**. Issei's **Balance Breaker** was massively different.

The crimson helmet being shaped more like a dragon's head, complete with jade colored eyes and icy blue horns. The pauldrons on his shoulders had large spikes that were the same icy blue as the horns on the helmet. His arms were covered in a scale like mesh, that protected the elbow joints. Clawed gauntlets protected his hands and wrists, the talons also being icy blue. On the back of each gauntlet was a jade green orb with the word Boost written inside it.

His body also had the scale like mesh protecting it, though it was only noticeable between the cuirass and pauldrons. Though there was a seem at the bottom of where Tannin guessed the rib-cage was, likely so as to keep the chest area loose enough to breath and move comfortably. A jade colored dragon spreading it's wings spread, covered the top half just above the seam.

While the cuirass was long enough for the front and back, the sides of his hips had to be guarded by thigh guards, which sat on top a thinner layer of metal that just surrounded and protected his thighs even further. Just like with the elbows the knees were only protected by the scale like mesh, which lead the dragon to think the elbow and knees were left with the lighter protection to allow for better mobility. Issei's shin guards were home to a large, jagged icy blue spikes each mirroring the ones on his pauldrons.

The only feature that didn't change compared to what Tannin recalled from the previous hosts version of the **Balance Breaker** was the metal boots protecting the feet. As he studied the icy blue spikes, Tannin noticed the chill coming off of them and wondered if it was a way to show case Issei's **Ice** magic. But the more he looked at Issei's the more he could see it wasn't a true and complete **Balance Breaker**. Which was strange.

"Hey Ddraig… Have any of your hosts ever had multiple forms for their **Balance Breaker**?"

" **I see you've noticed… Well to be honest, this is quite the weird situation. He still has a few dormant powers that need to awaken. Until they do, his Balance Breaker will never be complete. Instead just evolving and adapting to match what he is capable of.** "

Eyes growing wide at that response Tannin muttered to himself.

"So it as Lord Lucifer and I suspect?"

" **That he also inherited the Power of Destruction?** **The Bael clan power is indeed one of his still dormant power** **s.** "

Ddraig informed Tannin, the Dragon King noticing the fact that the Red Dragon noted that it was just one of his dormant powers. But before he could question Ddraig further Issei's conscious had returned from inside the **Boosted Gear**.

"Sorry about that… Anyway, I'm ready when you are Tannin!"

Issei called over to the Dragon King as he got into a battle stance once more. Taking a deep breath Tannin did the same. After a moment the two shot at each other, cratering the ground beneath them as they moved.

Thanks to his **Balance Breaker** Issei was having a far easier time than before, but it wasn't quite the level Tannin was expecting. Because he could still rely on his instincts, the older dragon mentally called out to Ddraig to question why.

' _ **It's not a perfect 100% boost right now because it's incomplete. There's a few things I need to check on from inside the Boosted Gear right now to confirm my suspicions…**_ '

With that Ddraig withdrew back into the **Boosted Gear** , and Tannin was left to focus on his battle with Issei. Shrugging it off Tannin threw himself into the fight, enjoying himself quite heavily.

 **Hours later**

Issei and Tannin both lay on the ground panting heavily and covered in bruises, cuts, and scrapes. But they were smiling happily as they enjoyed themselves.

"you know…. that **Balance Breaker…** Of yours… It's pretty damn powerful."

Tannin groaned out as he recovered enough to sit up. Thanks to their clash, he knew Ddraig was right in saying it didn't properly double Issei's power since it was still incomplete. But it was more than enough to put Issei on his level even when going all out, which made the fight quite fun.

But Issei was unable to respond, having fallen asleep already. Chuckling Tannin used **Telepathy** to let Tiamat know that they were done, before falling back to the ground and gazing at the sky happily. When she came to pick up Issei she offed a hand, but Tannin was comfortable and asked to be left alone for a bit, so she took off with Issei intending to gather Bova and Zoephiel before heading back to the Lucifuge territory to rest.

As she left her fellow Dragon King, Tiamat heard his mutterings about talking to Sirzechs after things settled back down. When Tannin finally made his way back down the mountain path to join them He found Tiamat in dragon form with the three teens on her back, though Issei was still out cold.

"Leaving already?"

He asked a little pout on his face as he mentally changed his plans from the large feast he'd wanted to send them off from.

"Yes. Issei may be unconscious, but as the King of his peerage it's his duty to be the first one home to greet the others."

Tiamat answered, right before getting a pat on the back from Bova as a signal that they were all situated comfortably and safely on her back. Nodding in farewell to her fellow Dragon King, Tiamat flapped her wings enough to get airborne before directing herself towards the Lucifuge territory.

* * *

S.R: Okay, yes there are a few hints for later on. But those hints don't matter right now. Those hints don't matter till the Rating Games arc is done and over with, and even then their might be an arc or two to go before the first of my hints becomes relevant. As for why Everyone is getting so beefed up now instead of following canon a bit better? Well... You'll just have to wait and see.


	34. Relaxation and Battle Plans

S.R: It's the calm before the storm.

Issei: Storm as in Sona's wrath?

S.R: Nope. Storm as in my wrath. I absolutely hate Diodora, so when we get to that battle, well I'm going to enjoy writing it at the very least.

Sona: QUIT SPOILING!

S.R: Fine. Fine. I'll shut up and you can enjoy the free time before the battle.

* * *

After Tiamat got Issei, Bova, and Zoephiel home, the three lounged about for the remainder of the day while they waited for the other members of Issei's peerage to return. Even though Sona was staying in the Lucifuge home with Issei, her peerage was stills staying in the Sitri home. While she'd been training with her sister and mother her peerage was training with Serafall's peerage as well. Sona had seen glimpses of their training and was satisfied with what she'd noticed, so she chose not to check in with them when her own training was finished. Instead she rushed over to the Lucifuge home wanting to spend the rest of the day with Issei. The moment she arrived on the property they could all sense her, which was a shock to Bova since he didn't think she'd grow strong enough for him to notice her presence without searching for it specifically.

The glasses wearing devil couldn't wait to show her fiancee the results of her training. Because of her own peerage she knew a trick that would surprise Issei. Waiting until he made eye contact, she flared her power, but focused it on the Queen piece she had been given by Issei. For his part Issei was certainly surprised by the new level of power she displayed, but he didn't show it. When she noticed Issei didn't even flinch at her little trick Sona pouted, and to Issei it was adorable.

He strode to her side and wrapped her up in a hug, whispering in her ear about how cute it looked when she pouted. Which caused a couple things. One, she blushed bright red and shoved him away. And two, she asked how he wasn't shocked by her new power.

"Oh I was shocked, but I knew you would surprise me so I asked Ddraig to help me keep a straight face. He agrees with me on the fact it is adorable when you pout."

The brown haired teen answered. The dragon he played host to spoke up in agreement.

" **You really are too cute for your own good. Plus I live vicariously through Issei, so if he wants to do something I'd say about 90% of the time it's something I want to do as well. Unless of course it's making you do something adorable. Then we agree 100% of the time.** "

Sighing at their response Sona decided to get back at them later. Instead she asked about how Issei wanted to deal with the Rating Game against Diodora.

"Are we going to wait until everyone is back to come up with a plan to deal with Diodora? Or are you working on one right now?"

Shaking his head Issei responded.

"I've got a couple thoughts rolling around in my head right now, but I want to talk with Papa about them first… We'll do that tomorrow though. I just want to sleep right now."

"Why aren't you already asleep then?"

Sona questioned, though she had a good feeling as to what the answer was.

"I'd like to at least say hi to everyone as they return. But even if I don't manage that I wanted to at least wait for you. It's hard to sleep when I don't have you in my arms."

In her head Sona was smirking, since she knew that was what he'd say. But that didn't stop her from blushing at his words anyway. Gently slapping her cheeks, Sona shook her head and forced her blush to fade. After a moment the dark haired girl decided she agreed with him, as she'd also had a hard time sleeping during the last two weeks. Reaching out she intertwined her hand with one of his and pulled Issei towards the stairs.

"Let someone else make sure they get home okay. I want some us time. Even if it means you just hold me while you sleep."

She said in a soft tone, unable to admit it out loud without being embarrassed. Though he wanted to say no and at least wave at his friends as they returned from their training, Issei couldn't find it in himself to turn his fiancee down. Instead following Sona up to his room, and curling up with her in his arms.

 **The next day**

Issei and his peerage were all gathered in the east wings lounge as they discussed minor details for their upcoming battle with Diodora's peerage. Of course this was only because Issei wanted to wait for his father and the other important guests that needed to be present for the discussion to show up before they could really start planning.

Bova was in the middle of suggesting that Issei use **Transfer** on him after he went into his full dragon form and letting him roast them with his fiery breath, when Issei's familiar Tawni opened the door and lead Sirzechs, Azazel, and Vali into the room. Greetings were exchanged quickly, as they sat down.

"So, you mentioned having a few questions to help create your counter plan?"

Sirzechs asked as he looked at his oldest son. Issei nodded in return, before openly wondering how the Rating Games determined the locations they were held at.

"Normally, a place is selected at random by the judge, and a team of capable magicians build a replica of the location inside a pocket dimension. Why?"

"Is it possible to hijack the teleportation process? I recall Mama directly teleporting us into the pocket dimension when I helped Rias out with the game against Riser."

Azazel, being the genius he is caught on to what Issei was thinking. Answering in Sirzechs stead he confirmed Issei's fears.

"Yes, so long as you use sufficient magic power you can alter the location a teleportation spell will transport people to… You think Diodora will have someone attempt to alter the destination you are sent to so he can have the advantage?"

Issei lowered his head slightly in response, before speaking up again.

"Yeah. If they can change the location of the Rating Game then Diodora can have allies waiting to ambush us. Or set traps. Or both."

Vali chimed in at this point.

"I'd wager you hit the nail on the head for their plans. So long as they control the location they have the advantage for the reasons you just said, along with several others. Though I wouldn't put it past them to try and kidnap someone as well just to hold as a hostage should you provide more resistance than they planed for."

Agreeing with the point Sirzechs spoke up.

"So what are you thinking then Issei? You wouldn't have asked if you didn't think it was possible."

Smiling at his father Issei commented "Let's keep a few aces hidden up our sleeves." Which drew questioning looks from most of the people in the room. Vali, Bova, and Tiamat were the only ones to catch on to what Issei was planning. Bova and Tiamat because they were there when Issei was experimenting with the idea, and Vali because he'd already had a similar thought.

Smirking as he shook his head at Issei's words Vali supplied the answer everyone was waiting for.

" **Dragon Seals**. Ha, depending on how much you practiced with them you could hide one of us inside a sealed dimension as a back up in case things get rough."

Instead of responding Issei just activated his **Dragon Seal** and the legendary sword Ascalon appeared in his hands. Since everyone present knew that Micheal had given it to Issei as a wedding gift no one was surprised to see it. The shock they were feeling came from the fact that Issei's seal was strong enough hide such a powerful object.

Bringing his hands together as he spoke Azazel gave the group a wicked grin.

"Well if you're seals are strong enough to hide that blade, then we can set up quite the surprise!"

Lightly flaring his magic Azazel created a communication circle next to his ear as he contacted one of his lab assistants back at the Grigori headquarters. A moment later he was holding a few special items he'd made when he was researching the Sacred Gear called **Annihilation Maker**.

"This little beauty you see right here is something I finally finished a few days ago. Similar to the **Annihilation Maker** Sacred Gear it's based off of it can create anything it's user imagines. However, if you try and create something that already exists, like say you try to create a copy of me, it would instead just pull on my magic and force me to appear."

Eyes going wide at the mad genius it would take to create the object being held in Azazel's hands Issei had to reevaluate the fallen-angel, suddenly glad he was a friend instead of an enemy. But just after he calmed down from the shock, his eyes went wide again as a thought hit him.

"You mean if I take this with me and get into a pinch, I could use it to get back up in the form of anyone I've ever met?"

Issei asked in a whisper as he was in awe.

"Well, yes. But if things get bad don't think to use it to get an army. It will overheat and need to cool down after repeated use, and if you force it to keep working at that point it will break. Hard limit before you need to let it recharge should be about 10 uses."

Gently taking it from Azazel's outstretched hands Issei used his **Dragon Seal** to hide the device away, along with returning Ascalon into his seal as well.

Sirzechs sighed at that.

"I was going to give him a summoning paper that would call for me and my peerage, but I think your invention is a better idea. However, that doesn't account for the biggest problem. Vali's probably right about the fact that they may try to kidnap someone. But without knowing who they'd target we can't really give them special protection."

Sona spoke up with her idea on the matter.

"It's going to be either Zoephiel or Kalawarner. Whoever gets kidnapped is going to be a result of what Diodora wants, and they're the only ones that they could target for that."

Eyebrow raised at that Azazel asked Sona to explain.

"Well, they should theoretically target me since that would be the easiest way to stop Issei in his tracks, but because I'm the most obvious choice they'll know it won't work since they wouldn't be able to separate me from Issei. Though we've already got something in place for if that happens. In their eyes Bova, Garran, and Koneko aren't huge threats. Plus Diodora doesn't really care what happens to you three. That leaves Zoephiel and Kalawarner, both of whom he was interested in when we saw him at the Youth Conference."

Garran conceded the point, Bova huffed at the idea of the enemies underestimating him, and Koneko just nodded silently.

At this point their conversation was interrupted as a magic circle appeared next to Azazel's ear. He listened for a moment before sighing. The Fallen-Angel told the person he was communicating with to come join him in person to discuss what they wanted to talk about. He gave a precise location away, and a moment later a magic circle appeared in the one to step out of it was Micheal the Archangel, who spoke up instantly.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I looked into things more after Azazel spoke with me a few weeks ago."

Turning towards the blonde and black haired man he continued speaking with sadness evident in his voice even as he laid a handful of folders on the table in front of everyone.

"Brother, you were right. Every member of that young Devils peerage is a former Holy Maiden."

"I promise you I will make him pay for that Micheal."

Issei said in a solemn tone as he placed a hand over his heart while looking at the blonde angel. Completely ignoring the folders that Azazel had opened, showcasing each member of Diodora's peerage.

"What can I offer to help?"

Micheal questioned, as he realized they were discussing how to deal with the situation. Sona being the quick thinker she was, explained how Zoephiel and Kalawarner would be the most likely targets to be used as hostages.

"I see. While there isn't much I can do to prevent that, I can provide some extra defensive measures for Kalawarner at least,"

The blonde angel started before turning to the navy blue haired woman and continuing.

"Sister, you still carry your holy sword yes? If you can still comfortably wield it then we can recharge the holy power inside it a bit. If you'd like I can see about getting you a shield from our armory as well. The synergy between the two should be enough to allow you to generate a holy barrier for a time."

Nodding her head Kalawarner presented her sword to Micheal. He did exactly as he'd suggested, and within moments Kalawarner was gifted with a golden shield. While it's holy presence wasn't much on it's own, when she placed the shield next to her sword the two objects began shining brightly.

"All that leaves is finding a way to protect Zoephiel."

Issei spoke, bringing everyone's attention back to the matter at hand.

"How do you feel about teaming up?"

Vali offered, knowing his rival would catch on to what he was suggesting.

"I don't mind, but don't get your hopes up. I plan to be the one to crush Diodora after all."

Issei answered as a bloodthirsty grin came to his face. One that was mirrored on Vali's face. The few people that knew just how alike the two teens were just shook their heads, while everyone else backed away slowly, suddenly concerned about the risk of a fight breaking out. Of course it didn't as Vali just held up a hand for Issei to fist bump.

"That's fine by me. After all this is **your** Rating Game."

With that the planning was done, according to the two Dragon Emperors. Sirzechs, Azazel, and Micheal just sighed before returning to their work for the day all three having deduced what Vali was meaning. Issei told his peerage to rest up as much as they could, so despite the desire to figure out what Vali meant they left the room to relax.

Kalawarner left to find the training room so she could get used to using a shield alongside her sword. Garran went to his 'alchemy lab' because it was a place he felt comfortable in. Koneko moved to the library and curled up next to a window to sunbath while napping. Sona followed the Nekomata and found a good book to read while she waited to get some alone time with Issei, knowing that he'd be playing games with his rival for a bit. Bova wanted to relax so he let his wings out and flew off for a bit. Zoephiel however waited next to the door to the lounge intending to ask what Vali meant since it involved her.

"Well, mind if my 'peerage' and I hang out around here today? I'll actually need help tomorrow to get ready for the Rating Game."

Vali asked as the two teens made their way to the door.

"Not at all. Though I have to ask. Why haven't you gone to Ajuka about getting your Evil Pieces. I mean yeah they're your friends but you call yourselves a peerage anyway. It would give you all a slight boost as well."

Issei commented.

"I thought about it, but Ajuka was busy training your mage Garran these last two weeks. Plus I did drop by and train with you and Bova for a few days. That really wore me out to be honest."

Was all he got as a response from his White haired friend, before Zoephiel ambushed them to ask what was going to happen.

"Well, no offense but without going out of our way to protect you the best way to prevent those jackasses from targeting you is to have my friend Le Fay use her magic to disguise me as you for the Rating Game tomorrow."

Vali told her.

"I-I see. But what if someone needs healed and I'm not there?"

She suddenly asked concerned that something may go wrong.

"It's fine Zoephiel. I don't plan to leave you behind. The moment Diodora reveals what they plan to do, I'll use my right as peerage king to summon you to my side."

Issei answered as he patted her shoulder comfortingly. Since she would still be present her fears that something may go wrong were mitigated. Accepting his words with a smile Zoephiel left, making her way to Garran's lab as she found the dark haired boy to be fun company.

"Now with that out of the way. What do you say we go play some Smash?"

"I'm game."

Agreeing on what to do Issei lead Vali towards his favorite place in the whole house. After taking a full stock of what his home here in the underworld had to offer Issei approached his staff about using magic to make a basement for the manor. The project went from adding one floor as a basement to adding three however. But these rooms were only accessible from an elevator that passed through the ground floor without an exit. Tucked away next to his study on the second floor was the only way to the basement as the facilities weren't meant to be used by non-regular guests. As he explained this to his white haired rival Issei began to talk about each of the basement floors.

"The lowest floor houses an indoor swimming pool, with diving boards at the deep end and a water slide that is meant to be a surprise for Millicas when the young devil comes to visit. It also has a teleportation circle that leads to the Lucifuge clans hot springs."

Issei finished describing the bottom basement floor around the time he and Vali reached the stairway in the entry hall. As they climbed the steps to the second floor he started talking about the middle floor of the three basement floors.

"Above the pool is a multi purpose room. There is a snack bar just to the left of the elevator door and to the right is a little lounge space with a couple couches and chairs. The majority of the room is set up so that when someone pours just a bit of magic into the floor or walls it would shift to be one of several different things. The room could either be a bowling alley, a tennis court, an archery range, or a basketball court."

"The last of the three basement floors is just a large game room. Inside is a massive TV with several game systems hooked into it. There are a couple three foot tall shelves that are lined with games, each set of shelves being for a different game system. In the center of the room is a large L shaped couch and a few bean bag chairs. Lining the wall opposite the elevator are several arcade games."

Just as Issei finished describing the rooms layout, the elevator doors opened for Vali to see the room himself. He was more than impressed with the room, though the feeling didn't last long as he plopped down into a bean bag chair while Issei set up the game. Not a single position had changed hours later when Vali's peerage arrived.

Kuroka despite her desire to cling to her little sister, left Koneko alone as she napped by the window in the library. The older Nekomata instead followed Sona's lead in finding a good book to read. Arthur and Bikou joined the Dragon Emperors in the game room, though neither of them wanted to join in the intense game of Smash Bros, choosing to play the arcade games instead. Arthur's sister Le Fay, joined Zoephiel and Garran in the alchemy lab since she wanted to talk magic with another magician, though she ended up in the library instead as she didn't feel comfortable trying to talk with Garran about magic while Zoephiel was trying to flirt with the black haired boy.

 **The next day**

"Is everyone ready?"

Issei asked his peerage as they waited to be transferred to the location the Rating Game would take place. But before anyone answered there was a flash of bright light as the teleportation circle they were using was forcefully activated.

* * *

S.R: I'd say cliff hanger but, you all already know what's coming. Not to mention the spot I ended it at is kinda cliché. But enough of me blabbering. See you all next time!


	35. Crushing Diodora

S.R: Well, this is going to be fun. Mostly because I'm going to enjoy destroying Diodora. Side note for those of you that read these. I hate Diodora so much that I hard core nerfed him in this story. Anyway here you guys go!

 **Last time**

"Is everyone ready?"

Issei asked his peerage as they waited to be transferred to the location the Rating Game would take place. But before anyone answered there was a flash of bright light as the teleportation circle they were using was forcefully activated.

 **This time**

Issei and his peerage were forcefully teleported to a new location. Despite the fact they knew it was going to happen they pretended to be shocked. After all having expected Diodora to pull some dirty trick, it wasn't hard to imagine he'd change the location that their Rating Game was supposed to take place in. Though it was easy to fake the surprised looks on their faces due to the fact that they were teleported earlier than the time the game was set to take place.

"Um… Wasn't our Rating Game supposed to take place in a forest? Why are we inside a castle courtyard?"

Garran spoke, playing up the confusion in an attempt to put anyone watching them into a false security. His idea partially worked as after a momment Diodora appeared standing on a balcony above them.

"Welcome, welcome. How do you all like our arena? I like to think I chose a nice little place for our game."

The dark green haired teen spoke, a dark and twisted smile on his face. Closing his eyes to avoid rolling them Issei sighed.

"I'll admit, it's a pretty cool location if you're going for the 'I'm the ultimate bad guy' look."

He told Diodora, with an open jab at the fact that the other devil was clearly doing something that was evil and wrong.

"Ha, why that's such an accusation. What have I done to deserve such rude remarks?"

At this point Bova spoke up, having decided it was time to pummel someone into the ground.

"Okay enough of this bullshit. If it weren't for the fact we knew you were evil already, we'd have figured it out when we were forcefully teleported EARLIER than the game was supposed to be, and to a spot that looks nothing like we were informed our arena would be like. So get it over with and spill it."

As the teenage dragon spoke up, he smashed his fists together clearly showcasing his eagerness to fight. Issei shook his head at his friends impatience, Garran face-palmed, and the girls sighed. Since they had already figured that much out Diodora decided to humor the request.

"Well that makes things so much easier then… Since you've already guess it, yes I have joined the 'Old Devils' faction. We along with several other, shall we say, alliances have borrowed power from Ophis the Infinite Dragon."

"Hate to break it to ya, but we already knew that."

Bova snorted in response. Shrugging at the teenage dragons words, Diodora raised his right hand and snapped. As he did the group was surprised to see they were being split up as the ground trembled and created stone walls between them. Bova and Koneko were together, just as Garran and Zoephiel were. Sona was grouped together with Kalawarner. Yet Issei was on his own.

"Well then how about this? I'll just imprison the Red Dragon Emperor, long enough for me to destroy you all. When I finally let him out he'll see your dead and broken bodies and fly into a rage. At that point crushing him will be too easy."

As Diodora spoke the ground raised Issei up into the air high above everyone else, as black chains appeared and bound him arms to his sides, before a light green cube formed around him, preventing him from seeing outside of his prison.

"I wonder, how best to break him. Leaving your corpses broken and shattered all over the place with you girls having clearly been ravaged, or ravaging one of you in front of him when I allow him to be free?"

Diodora commented as he snapped once more and his peerage appeared in the courtyard as well. They weren't the only additions to the party, as several dozens of older devils appeared as well. With Issei currently unable to do anything Sona stepped up to give out the orders for the peerage.

"I'll admit we didn't think of this as a possible plan you'd use against us. But I don't think it'd work. 'Zoephiel' if you would. I don't think Issei minds you getting a shot at Diodora since he can't do anything right now."

Smirking, the dark haired girl rolled her neck as her illusion faded, to reveal Vali. Diodora's eyes widened in panic as he saw the White Dragon Emperor. When Vali saw the panicked look on Diodora's face he grinned, before activating **Divine Dividing** and flying towards the dark green haired devil.

"While Vali has his fun. Bova Koneko you get to deal with Diodora's peerage. Garran and Kalawarner you two get the 'Old Devil' factions minions. As for me, I'll work on destroying Issei's prison."

Sona called out, turning sharply on her heels to face the stone pillar that Issei was trapped on top of.

 **Bova and Koneko**

Happily charging into battle, Bova slammed into one of Diodora's pawns bowling right through her, before reaching to his sides and gripping onto the heads of two more pawns. Bashing their heads together harshly, he let them bounce off of each other before shoving them into the ground. As he did that, Bova flipped, his heel catching the chin of the one he's slammed into as they attempted to attack him from behind. Scoffing, he turned towards Koneko.

"This is too damn easy."

The white haired girl nodded her head as she brought her heel down on top of one of Diodora's rooks in an axel kick. ' _Did we even need to train for this fight?'_ she thought to herself, disappointed that the fight wasn't worth the effort it would be to show off her new tricks.

Ducking under a ball of fire Koneko lunged towards a bishop, and headbutted them in the gut hard enough to instantly knock them to the ground unconscious.

"I want to trade with Vali."

She heard Bova mutter as the two easily squashed Diodora's peerage. While Koneko wasn't sure how the fight would go she secretly thought the same.

 **Garran and Kalawarner**

Kalawarner dodged between two fireballs as she slashed her sword across one of the devils chest, cutting him down with ease. Twirling her body she blocked another fire ball with her new shield before thrusting her sword into an approaching devil.

"Man, I didn't think they'd be this weak."

She commented surprised at the fact that they were falling in just one or two cuts from her blade. Sure she knew they were weak to the holy energy it held, but when Michael poured a bit of his power into it, he only put a small amount into it since she could only handle a small amount of it before the holy power harmed her as well.

What she didn't know was that thanks to her training, and her natural resistance to Holy power despite having been revived as a devil, her tolerance for the Holy energy had grown. Before training with Arthur and building her endurance and stamina she wouldn't have been able to withstand even a quarter of the power that Michael had bestowed upon her weapon. The fact that she was an angel, before being revived as a devil was already unbelievable so the idea that she her resistance towards holy energy could be improved still never crossed her mind, as she sliced through more and more devils.

Garran on the other hand was yawning in boredom. After his extreme training with Ajuka, his magic tore through the devils like paper-maché. Granted he was using his high tiered spells, in the hopes of ending the battle quickly due to how disappointing everything was. Still, with his magic power the 'Old Devils' faction peons were nothing but flies to him. ' _This is way to damn boring. I just want to go home and read.'_ The dark haired teen thought to himself in disappointment.

 **Vali**

"Geeze this is pathetic."

Vali taunted. Sure Diodora was pretty strong, however Vali was still easily dominating their battle. In fact he was having such an easy time dealing with Diodora that he wasn't even fully focused on their fight instead paying more attention to Issei's peerage as they crushed everything Diodora had brought to fight them.

"How dare you call me pathetic!"

Diodora shouted having finally lost his cool after being manhandled by Vali who hadn't used more than the basic level of his **Divine Dividing**.

"What, it's true. You can't handle me with just the base **Divine Dividing** and you thought you'd stand a chance against Issei if you pissed him off enough to go berserk? Are you stupid?! If either of us loose control over ourselves we enter **Juggernaut Drive** , which is far stronger than our **Balance Breakers**..."

Vali yelled, as he divided the magical attack that Diodora launched at him into nothing.

"Hell, I don't really even need to use **Divine Dividing** against you... Ha, this isn't worth it anymore."

Vali said as he deactivated his **Sacred Gear.** Sighing he turned away as he continued.

"You aren't worth my time. We've delayed this farce long enough for Sona to have gotten Issei free. I'll have more fun watching him utterly crush you, then I've had tossing you around like a rag-doll."

 **Sona**

"Sheesh. It almost isn't even worth it to do this. Ise, could probably just flare his power a little and shatter this barrier like glass."

Sona muttered as she swiftly dismantled Diodora's trap that held Issei prisoner. The level of power he'd displayed was certainly enough to give her pause and make her think it'd be a struggle win if she was the one that had to fight him. But it was actually quite sad. The other devil was pretty wasteful. He used enough power in his spell to entrap Issei, for it have been a challenge to undo. Except the majority of the power used in the spell wasn't even present in the barrier that encased her fiancee.

Sighing as the barrier faded, Sona rolled her eyes when she saw Issei twiddling his thumbs.

"Hey there."

He said, as he noticed the green cube fade. Despite the fact the barrier prevented him from seeing his surroundings, Issei was still able to hear.

 **Issei**

When he'd heard Diodora's taunt about how best to make him go berserk, the brown haired teen shook in rage. His muscles tensing as he thought about how to destroy the pest, before he shook his head and saw his arms were free again. Just the act of flexing his body was enough to break the chains that Diodora had placed on him. Cocking his head at how easy it was to get free Issei cast his senses outside the barrier for a moment wondering if perhaps the true trap was to get everyone to relax a bit because their enemies were too weak. As he did the peerage king noticed that he could feel Vali from the same direction as Diodora, and Vali hadn't even bothered to power up. _'_ _I know he's still a fair bit stronger than me but still. Using his base level against Diodora right now? Did we actually overestimate these guys?'_ He thought, as he calmed down. Since no one from his peerage was getting serious, he relaxed and decided to let things play out a bit more before making his move. Even though he could tell it'd be easy to escape, Issei had heard Sona's orders for his peerage so he knew she was already breaking the barrier down. Sighing he intertwined his hands and began twirling his thumbs around each other as he waited to be freed.

A moment later Sona had him free.

"Hey there."

He commented when the barrier faded. Smiling as his fiancee rolled her eyes at him, Issei pulled his hands apart.

"If it weren't for the fact that we'd have had to deal with Diodora's betrayal eventually I'd say this was a waste of time."

Sona commented as she gestured around them. Issei had heard her orders for his peerage while he'd been inside the green prison, but Bova and Koneko had already joined Garran and Kalawarner in mopping up the peons from the 'Old Devils' faction. At this point there was a little less than a dozen left. Since everyone seemed to be bored already Issei just flared his power. The force flooring those that weren't prepared for it.

"Alright guys enough playing around. Just sit back and enjoy as I show Diodora just how badly he screwed up."

Issei called, as he made his way toward Vali and Diodora. Moments later he found the throne room of the castle that Diodora had brought them to.

"Geeze you're plan sucked. It would have been far more interesting if after separating everyone you made them traverse the castle to even get to their fights rather than forcing everything to happen in the courtyard."

Issei taunted Diodora, happy to see the shock on the other devils face.

"H-how did you get free?!"

Diodora's shouted as he pointed towards Issei.

"Are you deaf as well, or just stupid? Didn't you hear me say Sona had gotten him free?"

Vali scoffed from his position as he walked towards the group before turning and leaning on the wall next to the door.

"You didn't finish him off?"

Issei asked as he looked over at Vali.

"He's not worth it. The dumbass thought he could beat you in a berserk rage, when he couldn't even handle me with the base form of **Divine Dividing**."

Vali explained. Issei wasn't surprised sense he had noticed that even while trapped. Garran and Sona both were curious just how strong Vali actually was since they still had yet to see him go all out. Bova was disappointed, while he knew he wasn't on Issei or Vali's level yet, if neither one of them needed to go beyond their base form to fight Diodora, then he wouldn't need to put his full effort into the fight to win, which meant he wouldn't enjoy the fight either. Kalawarner and Koneko both just sighed, fully expecting to watch a one sided beat down upon hearing the news.

"Well. That's no fun…. I was planning to utterly crush him. If he's that bad though… That's pretty pathetic."

Issei sighed.

"Quit looking down on me!"

Diodora roared in anger as he created his magic circle. Rather than let the dark green haired teen do anything Issei vanished from sight, his speed surprising all but Vali, and Bova as he was a blur now after his training. When they could see him clearly again Diodora's hand was being crushed in his vice grip.

"Not now, the adults are talking."

Issei teased, his words showing just how little he thought of the other teen. Issei's peerage burst out laughing at Diodora. Vali chuckled as well. When Issei heard their laughing his eyes lit up.

"Since you're so weak that I could destroy you just like this, I think I will. But I'll do it in the most humiliating way possible."

Issei commented with an evil grin on his face as he threw Diodora into the wall. A moment later he was standing next to the other teen as Diodora struggled to free himself from the wall. Punching forward, Issei embed the dark green haired teens head in the wall with the force. He then stepped back and let Diodora pull himself out of the wall, before throwing a fist straight into his gut, and bringing an elbow down on his back after the other teenage devil doubled over from the pain.

Turning Issei pulled his arms back to his sides as he brought his foot into Diodora's side and kicked him into another wall.

"Damn. You don't even make a good punching bag."

Issei commented when Diodora charged him in a rage at being tossed around . Side stepping the fist that was thrown at him Issei stuck his foot up and tripped the other devil. Leaning down and grabbing Diodora's cloak he stopped the other teen from face planting, before yanking on it hard enough to send Diodora flying back into the wall only a little further away from the previous spot, which already had spiderweb like cracks.

Raising his right hand, Issei created his magic circle before a few spears of ice appeared behind him. Closing his hand into a fist the lances of ice shot into the dust kicked up from Diodora's impact against the wall. A choked out shout of pain alerted everyone to the fact that the ice hit Issei's target. With his keen eyes Issei already knew how Diodora was pined to the wall yet he waited for the dust to settle so everyone else could see.

When the debris finally settled the group was treated to the sight of Diodora's back side and part of his face. His arms were pined out to his sides and one foot was pinned to the wall with the leg fully stretched out while the other leg was pined by the knee which was bent.

"Okay, this is boring already. Just give up and surrender quietly."

Issei called, attempting to offer an olive branch to his fellow devil in the hopes that he'd turn himself in to avoid being beaten into the ground. Though Issei knew if the teen didn't give in it wouldn't be a simple beating.

"Piss off you worthless trash!"

Diodora yelled as he attempted to break the ice that was trapping him. Sighing Issei reinforced it with his magic. ' _I really don't want to have to do this_ ' Issei thought to himself as he flashed back to the last thing Ajuka had told him when they were setting up the plans for dealing with this Rating Game.

 **Flashback**

Michael and Azazel had both left after the strategy meeting, Sirzechs and Ajuka were leaving too. However when they got to the door Ajuka turned around.

"Hey Issei… If my brother doesn't surrender…. If he doesn't give in to save himself, please end it. When Diodora gets stubborn like that, he won't stop."

"Are you sure?!"

The brown haired teen questioned in a panic. After all the older devil had just told him to kill his brother if he didn't turn himself in.

"Yes. He must be stopped…. If he doesn't give in willingly, please end it for me."

Ajuka asked, with a grave look on his face, almost as if he knew Diodora wouldn't surrender.

 **Flashback end**

"I really don't want to have to kill you, so please just give in."

Issei commented, while he gathered his power intending to entrap Diodora in ice so he wouldn't have to kill him. Only the heir to the Astaroth clan managed to break free and charge towards him. Punching forward Issei intended to stop Diodora in his tracks and finish the fight, but the dark green haired devil ran past him instead targeting Sona.

' _Even if it doesn't kill her, I just need to harm her enough to piss him off. If he's berserk I can win this!'_ Diodora thought to himself, confident that the strategy he and Shalba had come up with to kill the Red Dragon Emperor would work if he were berserk during the fight.

However Issei was quick to realize Who Diodora was truly targeting. Easily catching on to Diodora's intentions after his attempted counter failed, he used his magic circle to make a spear of ice that lanced through Diodora's side and into the floor, completely stopping him in his tracks. Diodora was shocked to have been stopped so easily as he still had another 15 steps before he'd have been within striking range of anyone in Issei's peerage. But then he recalled that he could still use magic to attack from his current distance, before he could put his idea into action however Issei cut him off.

"That was very stupid of you. Ask anyone in this room what happens when someone tries to attack Sona in front of me."

Issei growled out in a dark tone. Before Diodora could throw out his retort he found his body piercing through an undamaged section of the wall. Issei had roundhouse kicked him so hard he flew like an arrow into the wall. He didn't punch cleanly through however as only his head, shoulders, and part of the upper sections of his arms had gone through the wall. But he was stuck, unable to move in the slightest as the lower half of his body dangled in the air.

"Oh I know what to do here."

Issei commented in a vicious tone as he made a smaller dart of ice. Holding it in his right hand he took aim before tossing it. The dart pierced into Diodora's lower back before blooming icy crystals that grew out of each other in a clean pattern before melting slightly to become a smooth tail made of ice.

"Nice job pinning the tail on the donkey."

Vali commented, chuckled at the sight. Bova and Garran were full on laughing at the scene, while Sona and Kalawarner both had grins as they shook with silent laughter. Koneko just rolled her eyes at Issei's antics, though she did wonder just how angry he was towards Diodora, for attmepting to attack Sona in front of him.

Smirking Issei waited for Diodora to free himself. The other devil charged him once more, a magic circle in one of his hands as the other was cocked back to be thrown at him. Jumping over the fist Issei thrust his legs down on the outstretched arm, breaking it with the force behind his kick. It was such an unexpected counter that Diodora canceled out his magic circle, and tried to punch with his free arm, before he felt the pain of his arm breaking which made him flinch instead. Grabbing Diodora's shoulders Issei headbutted him, which caused the other teen to stagger backwards.

Sighing, Issei punched Diodora in the face, hard enough to send the dark green haired teenager spiraling into a third wall. Snapping his fingers a magic circle appeared under Diodora. The temperature of the air above the circle plummeted fast as ice began forming, causing Diodora to be encased in ice, as he struggled to pull himself out of the wall. This time because Issei was serious about trapping the dark green haired teen, it was so thick a shell of ice that no matter how he struggled Diodora was unable to break free.

"You know I'm still rather pissed that you tried to attack Sona right in front of me. But humiliating you is way too easy. I should probably end it."

Issei commented, as he faintly noticed another presence approaching the castle they were currently inside of. His words causing Diodora's eyes to widen in anger and a slight bit of fear. The rebelious devil struggled to free himself, even as he opened his mouth to call for help from the older devil that had entrusted him with the task of dealing with Issei.

Noticing that Diodora was going to call out, Issei cut him off.

"I wouldn't waste your breath. We already know Shalba's the one that's backing you. Papa, and Ajuka both warned me about him, but they also said he's more likely to abandon you than to come to your rescue."

Upon hearing Issei's words Diodora went limp in shock over the fact they knew exactly which of the leaders of the 'Old Devils' faction he was working for. Issei however turned to Vali.

"Think it's been long enough? This hasn't even been worth calling a warm up."

"I don't know. I mean Shalba is the reason you guys felt the need to train for this Rating Game right?"

Vali answered, as he also felt the newcomer approaching, but at a slow pace. Slow enough to tell him, that the person had no intention of joining in this battle. Issei noticed that fact as well and sighed. Shaking his head Issei decided it was time to end the fight.

"Yeah, but he didn't even show up… Well I've had enough of this."

As he spoke the **Boosted Gear** appeared on his hand. Planning to use his **Dragon Shot** technique, Issei recalled the fact he has to focus on creating draconic energy, before mentally shaking his head and trying something different. Drawing his natural energy out he shunted it into the **Boosted Gear** and used it to convert the naturally demonic energy into draconic energy. Smiling when it worked he noticed it was much faster to do things that way as he had built up enough power in 5 seconds rather than the 20 it would have taken otherwise.

Releasing it from his palm in a beam like form he winced when the beam expanded and encased Diodora, causing the wall to crumble apart. The impact releasing a shock wave that shook the room slightly. Sona and Vali's eyes widened at the attack though. They both felt a darker and more destructive energy hidden in the core of the attack. Vali was shocked as the energy was something he hadn't felt before but from what he could feel it was extraordinarily dangerous, while Sona was worried about the energy as she had only felt a similar power when she witness Sirzechs using a small portion of his power once before.

With Diodora dealt with everyone wanted to leave. Even though Issei and Vali both felt someone coming their way, they wanted nothing more than to return to Kuoh and get on with everything. After all, there was no way to know for sure that the one approaching them was Shalba, not until they actually arrived. Issei thought it would be a waste of time if it wasn't Shalba however, since only he and the other leaders of the 'Old Devils' faction were important enough to be labeled as threats that needed to be dealt with. Sharing a look the two decided it wasn't worth it to stay and the group used their own magic to teleport back to Kuoh.

 **The castle**

Twenty minutes later the person they felt approaching the old castle arrived. Only to find the peons that had been sent to help deal with Issei's peerage unconscious. Contemptuously shaking their head the being looked for Diodora's peerage. Several of their bodies were piled on top of each other. The stack of bodies being those that were knocked unconscious. But those that weren't in the stack didn't have the same luck. Two that were stuck head first into the ground, and one that was charred, were dead, likely because they were far weaker than expected, which lead to a few simple attacks being lethal.

"If this is how things are out here, I doubt that fool managed to do any better inside."

They spoke aggravated at the idea that they'd underestimated the Red Dragon Emperor and his peerage. Stepping inside the castle the person made their way to the thrown room, only to find several person shaped indents into a couple spots on the walls, and one wall that had crumbled almost completely. From the residual power in the room they could tell that Diodora's was defeated, but there was no trace of his body, despite the fact they could sense that he hadn't left the room after the dark haired teen entered the throne room. The heaviest trace of Diodora's power was in the center of the mostly destroyed wall, so the person took a closer look. Only to find a few tattered remains of a cloak.

"Hmph. The fool was utterly destroyed by that Red Dragon brat..."

They muttered before leaving the throne room. As they exited, the person didn't even glance back as the mused to themselves.

"Diodora was a far less useful pawn than I expected him to be… I wonder if Creuserey has had better luck with our other plans."

 **Issei**

When they returned to Kuoh, everyone let out a sigh. Since they all had secretly cast a recording spell on themselves before they even entered the room they were supposed to be waiting in before being transferred to the location of the Rating Game, it was easy to show the Four Satans exactly what had happened.

Though while they were doing that Zoephiel was yelling at Issei for not using his right as peerage king to call her to his location. It wasn't until Garran dragged her away from the brown haired teen that he was able to share his perspective of the events, which will unnecessary due to everyone else having been present, Sirzechs wanted to see anyway.

Ajuka was quiet as he watched the recording. Everyone in the room turned to him, knowing he must be feeling frustrated, upset, and disappointed in his younger brother. But he just sighed before smiling at Issei.

"Thank you for dealing with Diodora. The 'Old Devil' faction has to be dealt with, so every time we get the chance to weaken them we should take it."

Issei was both shocked and confused at Ajuka's words.

"Isn't… Isn't he your brother? I mean I can understand thanking me for handling it so you don't have to. But you've got to be feeling something right now..."

Sighing once more, Ajuka explained.

"Yes, I'm disappointed that my brother by blood did something stupid and reckless. To be honest with you though, it's no different than how I feel towards any other devil that's joined with the 'Old Devil' faction… When I became the current Beelzebub, everyone in my family cut ties with me. Diodora might have been one of the few that argued against that at first, but he turned against me when I wouldn't use my authority to help his ego…"

At that Sirzechs slapped Ajuka on the back gently. Which caused the green haired devil to smile again before continuing.

"Besides, family isn't bound by blood… I knew it long ago, but my family, the ones that matter to me, are right here."

His words brought a smile to Sirzechs, Serafall, and even Falbuim's faces, as they shared a group hug to show they agreed with his statement.

* * *

S.R: Okay, so I could have easily gone on for a good while, but I thought that was a good place to end the chapter. I mean it's a nice feel good moment, and I felt that to keep going would cheapen it a bit. As I said before I hard core nerfed Diodora, mostly due to how much I dislike him. Besides, the rest of the 'Old Devil' faction is being saved for later on.

Issei: So what's the plan now?

S.R: Well… We will finish the rest of the Rating Games, since it's helping establish characters more for later on. After that, it'll be the alliance with the Norse… That's all I'm spilling for now.


	36. Special note (Please read)

M.R: Hi all, I'm the female half of the account. Normally S.R does all the typing and updating (outside of my stories which I really need to finish working on and share but I'm rather lazy). But there was an incident at work earlier today and he now has a concussion. So he's not allowed near the computer because it counts as a 'bright light' according to the doctor. Anyway there's a good chance he won't be fully recovered by the end of the month (Doc said no computer until his concussion is gone), so I wanted to let everyone know that as of right now at least, there probably won't be any updates this month. Since he's too busy sulking about the fact he isn't even allowed to listen to music right now, I'll apologize on his behalf. Sorry to all you fans, or even the newbies who find his stories after this gets posted. I'd like to ask you all to be patient as he'll more than likely give an apology himself when he returns, and it will probably be a double update for everything as a way of making up for missing this month.


	37. New note

S.R: I'M BACK! But that doesn't mean this story is back. Since I wasn't allowed on the computer, I spent my down time reading Fairy Tail manga volumes that I own, which lead to several ideas. In other words I'm going back to mainly working on Fairy Tail stories. I'm not discontinuing this story though, instead I'm essentially putting it on hiatus without actually putting it on hiatus. Because I'm going to put it on the back burner, and only work on it every other month (So basically one update every two months). This is happening mostly because I have to get these new ideas out of my head, they're making it hard to work on this story. My One Piece story is getting placed on the back burner as well, but because I've already made notes and planned out so far ahead, it'll get updated once a month instead of once every two months.


	38. Another Date

S.R: Even though I mentioned it in the note that is the last update for this story, I feel like I should say it again in case someone didn't read it because they thought it was just a note saying I had recovered and would be back soon. Anyway. As I said in that note this story is being changed to a once every other month for updates. In other words this update, is the July update and the next update to happen is the September update. Make sense? Good, though I am sorry to do things this way since I am actually enjoying this story far more than I thought I would when I went into it. But I never really intended for it to be a 'main' story from me where the majority of my focus would be, so I am also glad to be slowing down with it and returning to my focus area. But enough about me and all that jazz. You came here for the story. So here you go.

* * *

A few days had passed since Issei's rating game with Diodora. Since they completely overwhelmed Diodora, Issei and Sona decided to take some time to relax. He was the biggest threat out of the other teenage devil peerage kings. But that was only because of his allies, who didn't even show up. Sure the other peerage kings were going to be tricky, but thanks to the intense training they did to be ready for Shalba if he had shown up to help Diodora, none of them felt concerned. After all thanks to Diodora manipulating the game location, it was unable to be aired for the others to watch. Which meant Rias was the only one to know how Issei and his peerage fight, and even then Rias and her peerage didn't know just how strong they'd gotten from their training.

Hence why the two peerage kings were relaxing. Because they could teleport anywhere and didn't have to stay in the underworld for the remaining Rating Games, both peerages returned to Kuoh. Sona had entrusted her queen Tsubaki with running things while she took a mini vacation with Issei. Issei had done similarly except he left his two familiars Tiamat and Tawni in charge. But since they weren't supposed to be doing much during the summer anyway they all had plenty of down time as evidenced by the fact that Issei was in the middle of a swim meet with Garran and Bova.

"Damn..."

Sona muttered under her breath, mad that her alone time with Issei had been interrupted. As the student council president for the school Sona was in charge of several things, but also had a lot of privileges. She had intended to have a surprise date with her fiancee at the school pool. Sure it needed cleaned but with her magic, that was childs play. But the moment she cast her spell both peerages came by to see what was going on and decided to join in on the fun.

"Something wrong Sona?"

Tsubaki asked an 'innocent' expression on her face telling Sona her friend knew exactly what the problem was. The glasses wearing devil just shook her head choosing to stay silent and not rise to the taunt.

"Look. We know that things are going to be crazy and hectic after these Rating Games are finished so we're just trying to have as much fun as we can right now. You were off training on your own so we're here to spend more time with you to make up for it. Issei's peerage was split up so they're taking the chance to stay together as well. It's not that we don't want to let you two have some time, so much as it is we want time with the two of you as well."

Sona understood that. They were all friends. Sure her peerage got to train together, but she wasn't there. Issei's peerage was split into groups and not all together either. So this was just their way of making up for lost time, since they wouldn't have the chance later. It just frustrated the female devil when her plans fell apart.

"I'm not mad. At least not at you all."

"Oh I know that. So do they. But hey, we've got to tease you while we can. Besides, if you really wanted a private moment with Issei so bad you could have taken him to the Sitri families private beach."

Sona felt a smile come to her face as her queen spoke. Her plans weren't ruined, just tweaked without her permission. But she couldn't find it in her to be mad about it since she understood that this was likely going to be the last chance they could cut loose and have fun like this for a long while.

"Not to mention I wanted to join in."

A new voice spoke causing the two to turn. Walking up to them in a very sensual black bikini was Rias Gremory. Her friend and Issei's aunt.

"Not taking every last minute you can before your game with Seekvaira?"

"Nope. After all the results of these games don't really matter. So we decided to just have fun with it. I know you guys couldn't do that with Diodora since he betrayed us and all, but I'd suggest you don't push yourselves with the rest of your Rating Games."

"If you knew just how much of a pushover Diodora was you'd know that we had already decided that anyway. Though Issei and I still plan on winning, but that's because I need to show I can get results if I want my dream to come true."

Rias rolled her eyes at Sona's words. She might not have been able to see the battle, or have been their when Issei's peerage gave their report about the situation to the Four Satan's but she'd heard about it from her older brother anyway… When he got drunk with their father during a family dinner and started praising Issei's victory.

"Still. Relax while you can. I was talking with Sirzechs for a bit last night after dinner, and he said that they've been thinking of trying to bring a few other groups into the alliance. Depending on how things play out we may be guarding the talks like we did at the faction meeting."

"I know. Serafall mentioned it to me while I was training with her."

Rias wanted to taunt her friend about just how overprotective Serafall was, but was silenced by a smirk from Tsubaki. The look on the queen's face said something along the lines of ' _I know what you're going to say. But you don't have any room to talk.'_

Around this time Issei walked up to the trio.

"Oh hey Rias. What's up?"

"I just wanted to join in on the fun. Xenovia's still changing into her swimsuit. Akeno will be here after a bit. She's having a lunch date with her dad. Kiba and Gasper should be here soon too. I know Gasper needed a swimsuit, and Kiba wanted to finish the puzzle he was working on before he came by."

The moment the red head finished speaking the pretty blonde boy that was Kiba joined them. He was wearing a simple pair of black swimming trunks, similar to Issei's. Except his brown haired friend had a solid red stripe running down the side of each leg.

"Hello."

they all offered their greetings to the blonde knight, who turned to his peerage king after a moment.

"You may want to have a talk with Gasper. he's changing into a swimsuit now and… Well… Nevermind, you'll just have to see for yourself."

Issei, Sona, and Tsubaki looked at Kiba curiously as he groaned at the thought of the Dhampir. It had been a while since they last saw him, so they didn't know what the issue could be. Rias however had a good idea.

"You thought because we finally got him to wear the male school uniform he'd stop cross-dressing didn't you?"

"Not really. More like I hoped he'd stop using the woman's changing room at the very least."

Shaking her head with a smile Rias told her knight not to worry about it. Xenovia and a very embarrassed Gasper joined them after the knight began stretching. Xenovia was wearing a deep green two piece that would have gotten her in trouble had school been in session. Gasper however had a light blue swimsuit. The top was covering enough to be considered a crop top, but considering Gasper was a male there wasn't really anything that needed to be covered. The bottom had frills making it seem a little childish, but it didn't look bad on him. Mostly because his short stature made him seem like a kid anyway.

"It's been a while."

Issei offered as a greeting to the two. The others chiming in after a moment. Gasper nodded shyly. Issei's eyes narrowed at that. He was slowly reverting back to the quiet and timid personality he had when they first met. Normally it wouldn't have mattered to the brown haired teen but when he was training Gasper and got him to open up to the others the timid part of his personality vanished.

Xenovia smiled as she offered her greetings, though she tried very hard to hide her blush when she greeted Issei. She'd been around long enough now to know how Sona handled people flirting with Issei and she didn't want to upset her, especially since Issei and Sona were engaged.

"What's wrong Xenovia? You're face is already red?"

Issei asked, making her sigh mentally as she failed to hide it. But since she was a very honest and open person she couldn't lie to them about the reason.

"Well… The only real desire I've ever had, was to have a child with a strong person and… You fit that description. But I don't want to get between you and Sona. It's hard to hide that I'm attracted to you though. Please don't mind me though. I'm sure I'll meet someone else."

Issei went wide eyed at her words. As did Tsubaki, Rias, Gasper, and Kiba. Sona however just sighed. She had seen the situation coming. Luckily Issei recovered and spoke up.

"I'm sure you'll meet someone else too. Thanks for being a good friend about the situation though. I'm actually a little tired of having girls confess to me. Before we started Summer Break, I had several girls trying to get between Sona and I and it really bothered me."

As he spoke the teen gently intertwined his hand with Sona's. He gave her a soft smile, that made her want to kiss him. The more the desire built inside her the more she wanted to take Tsubaki's advice and flea to her families private beach with him. He could tell that she was plotting something, but he wasn't read to leave just yet. Issei kissed Sona's forehead before stepping back.

"I know you've got something going on in that head. We can do whatever it is after a bit. I want to have another race with Garran and Bova. You want in Kiba?"

"Sure."

The two males left the group with matching grins. Sona couldn't help but smile softly as she melted just a little bit from Issei's affection. Tsubaki was happy for her friend and decided not to tease her for once. Rias smiled, happy to see just how devoted Issei was to Sona. Xenovia had a small smile as well, though hers was because she finally got things off her chest. Despite his habit of cross-dressing Gasper didn't want to risk being caught up in a girl talk about the situation and wondered off to the shade by Koneko, who was napping.

 **An Hour Later**

"You know. I'm only just now noticing you aren't in a swimsuit Sona."

Rias spoke, having an idea as to why her friend was still in regular clothes. But she wanted to make Sona admit it since teasing her was so much fun. However, the glasses wearing devil knew what the red head was trying to do. Even though she was embarrassed, Sona spoke calmly and without blushing as she tried to ruin Rias's fun.

"I was going to show Issei my new swimsuit. But it's for his eyes only, and everyone else came by before I could get changed… Speaking of. I'm going to take my chance now. We'll see everyone later."

Standing up she wondered over to Issei who was toweling off. He had raced with the other guys a couple times, before coaxing Koneko into the pool. He knew she was still a beginner when it came to swimming so he wanted to help her out, and the rest of the hour had been spent coaching her as she doggy paddled through the water.

With a smile Sona put her hand on Issei's shoulder before activating her magic and teleporting them away. Since everyone was expecting it to happen at some point they didn't make a big deal about it and let the two do their own thing.

"Where are we Sona?"

"Well since they interrupted my original plan I figured I'd let them have a bit of fun before making things private again."

Sona answered as Issei looked around at the beach they'd arrived on. Pure white sand and amazingly clear water were his clues that it was a very luxurious beach. Which meant it was a private beach. But He put that to the back of his mind as he asked what her original plan was.

"I wanted a private pool date with you. I even bought a new swimsuit just for you. But I didn't get to show it off."

She said as she walked towards a small little shack. Issei followed as he noticed the shack was built to be dressing rooms and showers to rinse off the sand. But he was polite and waited outside of the shack while Sona changed. When she came out he couldn't help the blush that came across his face as his heart skipped a beat.

A simple two piece ocean blue bikini was what she had chosen. Except, the top covered less that he'd expected. It provided no side coverage, instead being two triangular pieces of cloth with a string connected them from one corner. The other corners had strings, the top two running up and over her shoulder, while the two remaining sided wrapped around her chest to tie together in the back. A faint light green stripe on each split the triangles in two. A water proof and slightly sheer sarong blue skirt was tied on her left hip. As he studied it Issei noticed little faded white stars decorated the skirt. She had a red bracelet, that was patterned to look like flowers despite being plastic on her left wrist. A red Lily was tucked into her hair to finish the look.

Being blue and green, it was her signature colors when outside of her school uniform. But he appreciated the red bracelet and flower, as they were a subtle nod to his signature color of red. Issei struggled to swallow as he tried to find the words to describe just how beautiful she was.

"Sona you're so… so beautiful… That swimsuit is exceptionally gorgeous on you."

At his words Sona couldn't help but go bright red, the color in her face matching the lily in her hair. Which was a surprise addition that she hadn't been expecting to show off. But when she entered the changing room there was a vase fully of lilies, and she thought adding a bit more red to her look would please her boyfriend.

It took both of them a moment to calm themselves after that. Recovering enough to move about again, but not enough to speak without the fear of stumbling over her words Sona just stepped close to her boyfriend and kissed him on the cheek before tugging on his hand as she lead him towards her favorite spot on the beach. Silently she thanked Tsubaki for suggesting the private beach as a location for the two of them to be alone, Sona had Issei sit down before snuggling into his lap as they looked out over the water at the sunset. Together they sat, unaware of the fact that they had a few giddy adults watching them with smiles as they secretly took photos.

"This date might not have been what you originally planned, but I think this is much better than it would have been with the school pool."

Issei mumbled into her ear, though Sona also felt his chest rumbling as he spoke. She shivered at the feeling, as she pushed her body into his hoping to feel it again.

"Yeah. This is way better."

She replied, tilting her head back and sideways to kiss him once more, except on the lips this time.

* * *

S.R: I'll admit. At first I wanted to have them sitting on the sidelines and commenting as they watched Rias's Rating Game with Seekvaira, but I scrapped that idea when I realized that it would be a lot more fun to do a lighthearted date again. Anyway, I'll see you guys with the next update in September.


	39. The Clash Begins: Issei Vs Sairoarg!

S.R: For my sanity, I decided not to do every single Rating Game like I had originally intended. Instead I'll list the results of all of them up until the point where this chapter starts. So with that out of the way let's get to to the story.

* * *

The last few weeks had been… interesting to Issei and his fiance Sona. After their first Rating Game with Diodora, they decided a wait and see strategy would be best for the rest of their games. The second game they had was for Sona's peerage against Zephyrdor. Since Issei wanted to kick his ass for openly mocking Sona's dream he reveled in the fact that he would be in the battle as part of Sona's peerage. In the end though it was a let down. He didn't even have to activate **Boosted Gear** to thrash the other peerage king.

Then they had a Rating Game against Rias. She and her peerage put up a decent fight, managing to just barely take Kalawarner out of the fight after she defeated both of Rias's pawns and fought a 2 on 1 fight with Kiba and Xenovia. But she was avenged by Koneko, who completely surprised Rias and her peerage with how much she had grown since joining Issei's peerage. Though the nekomata retired from the game it wasn't due to being defeated so much as it was because she wore herself out after finishing off the two knights and defending herself from Akeno, long enough to be rescued by Bova. But in the end thanks to Sona's strategy, and the strength of Issei's peerage Rias was defeated.

The fourth Rating Game was Sona's peerage against Seekvaira. While it was more challenging than Zephyrdor, Seekvaira's peerage was not as difficult as Rias's peerage. So once again with an excellent strategy from Sona they claimed victory.

"You know the two of you are somethin' else."

Sairoarg commented when they met up a day before the Rating Game that they were going to have. The heir to the Bael clan and cousin to Issei had been coming around to hang out with them in an attempt to get to know his long lost cousin better.

"What do you mean?"

"Sirzechs and the other Satan's decided to make your achievements known to the public. You've handled several rouge fallen-angels, Issei helped dissolve Rias's engagement to Riser, You guys and Rias helped the Grauzauber during a siege, You fought off a Cadre class fallen-angel, defeated a traitor to devil kind, and are undefeated against the other peerage kings your age."

"Either we just have the good luck to get through it all, or we've got some seriously bad luck that causes us to be involved in all of this stuff."

Issei replied, not wanted to get a big head despite the fact their accomplishments were praise worthy. Sona rolled her eyes at her fiance's words. Though she did agree on the fact they didn't go looking for trouble.

"But I plan to prove myself as one of the strongest, so my peerage and I'll be handing you your first defeat in a Rating Game tomorrow."

"Good luck with that."

Issei replied, confident in their power.

"Well It was fun, but I've got to get back and finish up a few final preparations for tomorrow. I'll see you during the Rating Game."

Sairoarg replied as he stood up from his seat at the table where they'd been eating lunch while talking. Issei smiled as he gave his cousin a small wave, and Sona politely said that they'd see him later.

"Issei, he might be more of a challenge than Rias."

"Yeah. He suppresses it well, but thanks to training with Tannin and Tiamat, I can sense a persons general power level."

The brown haired teen replied as he locked eyes with his fiance.

 **The Next Day**

Because of how popular they had become after all of their achievements were made public, The Four Satan's had also declared that Issei and Sona's Rating Game against Sairoarg would be public as well. Since it was going to be viewed by a lot of people a professional announcer was brought in to be the host, instead of Grayfia doing it like she had back when Issei had joined Rias's peerage to take down Riser.

"Welcome one and all to a very exciting event. This will be a Rating Game for the ages. For the first time since the introduction of the Rating Games, our Satan's have opened them up to the young heirs and heiresses to the pillar clans. So you can all expect this to be an interesting match, especially when we have Sairoarg Bael, heir to the Bael clan facing off against Issei Lucifuge, the current head of the Lucifuge family!"

The commentator announced, though Issei grimaced when he was mentioned. For formalities sake anytime he was going to be introduced as the head of the Lucifuge clan, his other last names were going to be dropped. Back when he first met his parents he had dropped the Lucifuge from his name, because it felt like a mouth full when combined with Gremory and Hyoudou, but then he had to take it anyway because of politics. Even after settling into things it still felt strange to him, and even more so when his other names were dropped.

Eventually the hype up for the Rating Game was done and it was time to begin.

"What's our move?"

Garran asked as he looked towards the king and queen of the group. For some reason the hairs on the back of his neck were standing up.

"Sairoarg and his peerage are powerful given the fact that like us they are undefeated. So we've got to work carefully. For now though..."

Sona commented before trailing off in thought. After a moment she looked up.

"Given what I know of his peerage members this will be very tricky and we'll have to pay close attention to the rolls."

Sona commented, a bit put off by the fact their Rating Game was special in more ways than one. Because of their power and brain, it was decided that rather than risk taking all day with a regular Rating Game they would play with a set of rules known as Dice Rules.

Each side was given a six sided die, and each peerage member was assigned a number based on what type of Evil Piece they were in their respective peerages. Both peerage Kings would roll their dice and the results would be added together to determine who could be on the field.

"How so?"

Bova asked, since he wasn't paying attention when the rules were announced.

"Pawns are worth 1, unless more pieces were used on them, so in Sairoarg's case his Pawn Regulus would be a 7. Bishops and Knights are both worth 3, while Rooks are worth 5, Queens are 9, and Kings can be anywhere from 1 to 12. Let's say Sairoarg rolls a 5 and we roll a 6. That means a total of 11 can be spent. So Sairoarg could send out both of his knights and a Bishop for a total of 9, while we could counter by sending me as a queen who also counts for 9."

"So?"

Bova asked not really understanding what Sona was getting at.

"Sairoarg's peerage is… unique. Every member of his group is stronger than you would expect. Enough so that we have to be careful not to let ourselves get overwhelmed. After all Issei is the only one here that gets stronger the longer a fight drags out. Speaking of, you should probably be using **Boost** even when you aren't fighting Ise. Sairoarg has the brute strength to punch through a dragons scale when he gets serious."

Nodding Issei called out his **Boosted Gear** , though he didn't start boosting up just yet.

"Alright then, that's the fifteen minute mark, the time to talk strategy is over! Let the Rating Game begin!"

The announcer spoke up. Sighing Issei reached for the die that he had been give for the game and rolled. Sairoarg rolled his die just as quickly. Both peerages were given a screen with which they could see the results of the rolls, and watch the fights, so they watched on as the screen began to display the dice rolls.

"Alright it looks like Sairoarg has rolled a 4 and Issei has rolled a 6, for a total of 10."

They heard from the commentator.

"That's going to get old very quickly isn't it?"

Issei asked, already fighting off a headache because the sound of the announcer's voice echoed loudly around them.

But he didn't get an answer as Sona was already directing his peerage.

"Let's start off with a bang. Garran and Koneko, go have fun."

Even though they trusted her judgment and would follow her, they still had to get confirmation from Issei before marching out to fight. He just nodded at them with a smile.

"Give 'em hell."

Garran and Koneko were met by both of Sairoarg's knights, and one of his bishops.

"Oh, it looks like Issei has send out a combination of his Rook Koneko, and Bishop Garran, while Sairoarg sent out his Knights Liban and Beruka alongside his Bishop Misteeta. Will numbers prevail and Sairoarg take the first win, or will Issei's peerage come out on top even though it's an uneven fight? Who knows, but we'll certainly find out!"

Ignoring the announcer entirely Koneko started to stretch while Garran assembled his Grimoire. Sona had told them to start things off with a bang, so neither one were going to hold back.

"I guess we'll start."

Misteeta commented as he pointed his staff towards Koneko, hoping to use his **Sacred Gear** to seal off her ability to move so she could be overwhelmed by the two knights who could easily over power Garran. Or at least that's what he thought.

"Oh? You're somehow preventing me from using my nekomata abilities."

Koneko commented as she ducked under a lance thrust from Beruka, before lashing out with a kick, that caused a sickening crunch like sound from the leg of Beruka's horse. Since he trusted Koneko to hold her own long enough for him to get rid of Sairoarg's Bishop Garran ignored her fight and pointed his fully combined grimoire towards Misteeta.

" **Frost Surge!** "

Unleashing a wave of ice, towards the enemy Bishop, Garran activated the Teleportation spell his grimoire had stored to move out of the way of a sword strike from Sairoarg's other knight Liban.

" **Glacial Burst**."

Another spell was cast, this time a rippling shock-wave that chilled his enemies to the bone burst out from his scepter. But rather than point it towards Misteeta who had only just gotten out of the way of his first spell, Garran had pointed it at Liban.

He knew the swordsman would try and dodge, but that was what he wanted. It was a distraction so Koneko could throw Beruka and his horse at Liban from behind.

"Garran and Koneko have remarkable teamwork, despite the fact they haven't been communicating at all! Even after Misteeta used her **Trick Vanish** Sacred Gear on the female Rook, Koneko is still fighting on as a true powerhouse Rook. It's an absolutely wild battle!"

The announcer commented at this point, finally having regained enough of himself to do his job and speak. Not that anyone in the audience could blame him. Most of them were still in awe of the fight, not having really expected to see the level of power that the group of fighters were showing off.

"Oh, and there goes Misteeta! That must have hurt quite a bit to be taken out by one attack even if it was from a Rook."

The commentator said as Koneko launched a sneak attack on the Bishop that was distracted by running from Garran's barrage of ice.

"Relax. I've got the rest of this."

Koneko commented to Garran as they stood side by side facing the two knights that Sairoarg had sent out to battle them.

"If you say so."

Nodding her confirmation, Koneko surprised everyone when she let her nekomata ears and tail out. They weren't surprised by the fact she was a nekomata, nor by the fact she had stopped hiding it (at least those that already knew), no the shock was from the fact her tail had split, making her a two tailed nekomata.

"Oh boy, That's one powerful Rook Lord Lucifuge has in his peerage!"

No longer suppressing her nekomata side, Koneko received the full benefits of her species. Not just the enhanced senses, but also the agility, flexibility, and magical ability. Yet those that knew her well enough could see she was still holding back as she one sidedly beat down Sairoarg's two knights.

"The first fight goes to Lord Lucifuge!"

With that the two returned to the base that Issei's peerage was using for the Rating Game.

"Nice job guys. But counting Sairoarg himself we've still got 6 left to take down. Don't let up just yet."

Issei commented, as he high-fived Garran while using his other hand to give Koneko a head-pat. Then he rolled the die once again.

"This time Issei has rolled a 3, and Sairoarg a 5, making a total of 8. I wonder what the match up this time will be like."

For the first round Issei and Sona had decided on Garran and Koneko rather quickly, but this round the first one to decide who to sent out was Sairoarg. He only sent his Rook, Gandoma.

"Other than his extraordinary strength I can't think of anything special about Gandoma or the Balam clan."

"So he might be the least threatening of them?"

"Right."

Sona and Issei went back and forth, but as they thought about how to handle it Kalawarner stepped up.

"I've got this one."

"Are you sure?"

Sona asked. Kalawarner just nodded her head. Without a better idea they agreed.

"Alright but be careful."

Issei and Sona said in unison. Smiling Kalawarner nodded at the two before making her way to the battle field to face off with Gandoma.

"It looks like this match up will be Rook versus Knight. Gandoma is known for his abnormal level of strength, but Kalawarner is a former fallen-angel. Who truly has the advantage? I don't know but I suspect we'll find out!"

The commentator spoke up, somewhat surprised at just how little info he'd been given to talk about Kalawarner if she appeared. Of course he wasn't given much for the others either, but of Issei's peerage she was the one that they had the least amount of info on.

"Don't hold it against me, since I'm not holding back."

"I'm not either."

Kalawarner responded as she drew her sword and attached her shield to her wrist. Gandoma was being cautious since Kalawarner had a longer reach with her sword, but he did get close enough for him to be able to attack if he saw the chance.

It was a fairly close fight, teetering back and forth, as they clashed. Gandoma's strength being enough to offset Kalawarner's advantage in reach. Especially after a bad block with her shield caused the devil to bat it away from her, the clasp holding it in place against her arm being broken from the force of his fist meeting the shield.

But Kalawarner wasn't giving up easily, having scored a few dozen small cuts on the devil.

"That sword really hurts. But I can power through the pain long enough to take you down!"

Gandoma commented after a he purposely gave the swords-woman an opening to take advantage of. Kalawarner's blade had only just started to cut into his side when the rather tall devil brought his arm into his side and pinched the blade in place long enough for him to lash out with his free hand. His fist hammered into Kalawarner's cheek and sent her flying back, before she harshly bounced headfirst off the ground upon landing. But then he fell to his knees and declared he was retiring as well. His words only just managed to come out before he finished falling to the ground out cold.

"Oh, a draw for the second round of this battle. While not quite enough to even things back up, it does help shift the balance back towards an even match for Sairoarg."

Was heard as the announcer spoke up. Issei and the rest of his peerage were a little sad that Kalawarner didn't manage a perfect win, but they were proud that she managed the draw.

"I didn't expect his strength to be able to allow him to power through that. I mean she had the advantage in reach, speed, and the fact that her weapon is a holy blade."

Sona commented, finding herself very impressed with Sairoarg's Rook.

"Yeah, but we'll have to figure out something to cheer her up when we're done here. She's probably going to be beating herself up over it."

Issei commented as he started to roll his die for the third time. He had a 3 pop up for his roll.

"Oh, Lord Lucifuge has rolled a 3 and the young heir to the Bael clan has rolled a two for a grand total of 5!"

"I'm going this time boss."

Bova commented, his blood boiling to fight. He had held himself back as much as he could, but the teenage dragon couldn't stand the boredom any longer.

"Alright. Be careful though."

"Nah, it won't be that hard."

Bova commented with a grin. He could see who he was facing already as Sairoarg had already sent out his second Rook. He knew the young man well. Bova was still smirking even as he strode onto the battleground.

"Hey Ladora, it's been a while."

"Oh boy. I can't afford to hold back now."

Ladora commented when he saw Bova approaching. Both of them just looked at each other for a moment, but then Ladora crossed his arms and began to glow. His body shifted, and stretched to become a rather sizable dragon.

"Hey you finally learned how to do it! Maybe this'll be more fun than I thought!"

Bova commented as he took on his full dragon form as well.

* * *

S.R: And cut! Yeah I know, it's a bit cliché to end it there, but I can't keep going. My mind has already shifted back to thinking about my Fairy Tail stuff. But I've still got to update my One piece story. So I have to stop here, and find a way to think about One Piece long enough to start working on that update. I'll see you all next time (A.K.A. some time in November)!


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